Where I Belong: Dianna's Story
by Phantom-Demon
Summary: When Olyvia Hamilton arrived in Ferelden, she unknowingly brought her family along with her. So just how is the remainder of the Hamilton family adjusting to living in Highever now that the Blight is over? This is Dianna's story of finding her place in this strange world, the cause of the civil war about to break loose, and falling in love.
1. Chapter 1

**For those who haven't read, Where I Belong, you may be a little lost as to some of the back story mentioned in this fic, but overall you can read this on its own. This is a complimentary/side story to Allegiance, the sequel to Where I Belong, so if you're coming from either of those two stories, I hope you enjoy this as much as the others.**

**And here's a big thank you to those who have reviewed, faved, and followed my stories. You guys are awesome!**

**CHAPTER ONE**

It had been over three months since Dianna's sister Olyvia had left to Antiva with her new husband, and Dianna found she was missing her sister quite a bit. They were so close in age, growing up together, they were each other's best friends, as well as each other's biggest rivals. So far, they had only received one letter from her, saying they were in Antiva, bought a house (thanks to the money she ripped off of Aedan), and Alistair had found a job. Dianna's parents were impatiently awaiting another one, hoping to hear how life was going for her.

Without Olyvia there, Dianna had little to ease her boredom. Her youngest sister, Rosemary, was not all that fun to try to hold a conversation with, since she would just start talking to herself after a while, taking over said conversation. Being extremely bored this particular day, she went ahead and spent some time with her sister. The weather was cool, but it was sunny so she and Rosemary were hanging out in the back yard, tossing a medium sized soft leather ball to each other from where they sat on the ground.

"When do you think we'll get another letter from Livy?" Rosemary asked.

"I don't know. It's been a month since we had the last one," Dianna replied, "It takes a while for letters to get here. Who knows, another might be on its way here."

Rosemary sighed, "Oh I sure hope so. I miss her bunches. I wonder how she and Alistair are doing. They just looked…so cute together. A perfect couple. Aw, why can't they live here?"

"You know why," Dianna said, throwing the ball to Rosemary rather hard that she almost went reeling backwards, "It's that Aedan guy's fault."

"Isn't he like…the king now?" Rosemary asked, throwing back the ball as hard as she could, which really wasn't all that hard.

Dianna easily caught the ball, not wavering in the slightest, "Unfortunately, yes. He's also the brother of the new Teyrn here, though Livy did say that the brother was nicer."

"I hope so," Rosemary muttered.

Dianna threw the ball back to Rosemary and sighed heavily, "I'm bored already."

"You want to go down to the beach?" Rosemary asked, setting the ball down.

"Rosemary, it's barely spring," Dianna said.

"I'm not saying go in the water," Rosemary rebutted, "We can just walk along the beach, collect some more seashells or something."

Dianna thought over it for a few seconds, "I guess we could. We have nothing better to do."

"I'll go let Mom know where we're going," Rosemary said, getting up and dusting off her backside.

Dianna got to her feet as well, heading inside to grab a small pouch that she could hang on her belt so that if she and Rosemary did find any shells they wanted to keep, they could just place them in there instead of trying to carry them all the way back.

Rosemary met her older sister outside a few minutes later, wearing a pair of breeches and a tunic instead of the dress she was wearing before so she could more easily climb down to the beach they always went to. No one was ever there, but that was because it was hard to get to from the city. To her, it looked like the only easy way down was somewhere near the castle.

Walking to the outskirts of town, they reached the Cliffside that led down to the beach. Finding the spot they used to climb down, Rosemary started down first, grabbing onto the handholds on the rock and the roots from trees as she made her way down. Dianna followed after, and after spending nearly ten minutes scaling the fifty foot cliff face, they dropped down onto the white sand.

"Beach!" Rosemary exclaimed as she took off along the beach.

Dianna moved at a slower pace, following her sister as she went to the small cave they found in the cliff wall a few trips ago. The two never went too far inside, since they never brought any source of light with them, but it seemed to go quite deep, and Dianna was rather interested to explore it.

Reaching the cave, Dianna found that Rosemary was waiting just a few feet inside for her, too scared to venture too far in by herself.

"I thought you wanted to look for seashells," Dianna said.

"Maybe later," Rosemary said, "Let's see how far we can go in the cave today."

"It won't be that far," Dianna said, following Rosemary further into the cave, "It's not that bright out today, so not much light will be filtering in. And you hate the dark, so you'll chicken out real quick."

Rosemary frowned up at her sister, but she was right, she did hate the dark.

"Come on, let's just go," Rosemary said, moving further in.

Moving further in, they used their hands to help guide them along the slick, wet stone walls, especially when it got too dark, their eyes not yet adjusted to the darkness. Rosemary slowed when they came to the point that they hadn't passed, feeling the walls turn to the left.

"Why are you stopping?" Dianna asked, "I thought you wanted to try to go further."

"It's so…dark," Rosemary said.

"Well, maybe next time we'll try to remember to bring a lantern or something so we can actually try exploring this place," Dianna said, "You have to admit, it's rather intriguing."

"I'm not as interested in that sort of thing as you, but yes, it is rather intriguing," Rosemary said.

"So are you going to keep moving?" Dianna asked.

Rosemary took in a deep breath before taking a few more steps forward around the corner, extending her arms out so she could feel along both walls to find her way. Since she moved slowly, they hadn't gone very far in the next ten minutes or so they spent in there, and Rosemary stopped.

"Shells are sounding good right now," Rosemary said.

"Someone getting scared?" Dianna taunted.

"I can't see, I don't want to go much further anymore," Rosemary replied, "We'll wait until we have a lantern, like you said. Plus, there is no telling what else can be in here that can see better in the dark."

Rosemary did have a point, and Dianna started to feel a little more wary. It probably was a good idea to head back.

"Alright, you make a good point," Dianna said, "Let's go back and see what sort of shells we can find then."

Dianna had just turned around when Rosemary let out an ear piercing shriek, causing her to cringe.

"Ow! What the heck Rosemary?"

"Something touched me!" Rosemary exclaimed.

Dianna rolled her eyes, "It's probably just your imagination."

"No, really, something slimy touched my leg!"

She shrieked again, "There it is again! Move Dianna! Move!"

Rosemary began pushing against her sister, not helping at all, when Dianna felt something cold and wet hit her across her ankle. With a tiny shriek, she jumped, and then took off at a fast walk, wanting to get out of there as fast as she could without hurting herself.

"Keep moving! Keep moving!" Rosemary shouted.

As Dianna rounded the corner, able to see the light coming in from the entrance of the tunnel, Rosemary screamed again, pushing Dianna on the back. Startled again from her sister's hands landing on her back, Dianna let out another scream as she took off at a run, now that she could see in front of her. Reaching the cave entrance, the two went barreling out of there, but Dianna screeched to a halt when she saw a horse right in her path. The two startled the horse from their sudden appearance, and it reared up, and as Dianna went to move away, Rosemary smacked right into her, knocking both of them to the ground. Dianna threw her arms over her head, praying the horse wouldn't hit either of them, opening one eye to see what was happening. The rider pulled the horse back, its hooves landing back on the ground a safe distance away from them. Dianna scrambled back up onto her knees and reached over to offer Rosemary a hand.

"What in the name of the Maker? Who are you and what are you doing here?" the rider, a man, asked, "This beach is only accessible from the castle."

Dianna pushed herself to her feet, and turned to the rider, freezing as she blinked up at him. Her cheeks flushed red, finding him rather handsome, with a kind face, dark eyes, and dark brown hair. Beginning to feel a little uncomfortable under his surprised gaze, she scooted over behind her sister, even though it didn't do much to hide her, since Rosemary was just over a head shorter.

"Um…we sort of…climbed down," Rosemary muttered.

"We didn't know this was…private…" Dianna said, "We will uh…we'll just uh…leave then…"

"You…you _climbed_ down?" the man asked, looking up the cliff face. It was quite the climb.

"Uh…yes?" Dianna replied, "We didn't mean to intrude. I apologize. We'll leave right away, a-and never return. Sorry."

Dianna grabbed Rosemary by the hand and began to drag her away when the man called out to them.

"Wait, what are your names?" he asked.

Dianna's stomach began to churn, "Are…are we in trouble?"

The man shook his head, "No, you're not in trouble, though I advise against coming back here. I just would like to know your names, in case you do not heed that advice."

"Uh…I-I'm…Dianna," Dianna replied, figuring there was no point in giving him a false name, but she wasn't going to say a last name unless he specifically asked. She doubted she'd see him again, because now that she knew this beach was part of the Teyrn's property, she would not step foot here again, and she and Rosemary could live with going to the other beaches available to them.

"I'm…Rosemary," Rosemary muttered, inching further away and closer to the cliff wall.

"Well, Dianna, Rosemary, you both should return on home," the man said.

The two nodded vigorously.

"Yes, right away," Dianna said, whirling around and running to the cliff wall before quickly climbing her way up.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Rosemary shouted, shimmying on up right behind her.

The rider stayed, watching the two in shock as he watched them climb up, and then disappear over the top of the cliff. Pulling his horse back around, he headed back toward the castle.

* * *

"Never again," Dianna gasped as she and Rosemary sat down on the chairs in the main room of their home, "We are never going back there. If we're caught again, and by someone who isn't as lenient, we're going to be in huge trouble."

"Even though that cave is there?" Rosemary asked.

Dianna shook her head, "Not worth it. Rosemary, we were on castle land. We could have been thought as intruders, trying to sneak into the castle. We can be killed on sight for that sort of stuff."

Rosemary paled, "Oh…really?"

"Really, really," Dianna replied.

"Oh…well…um…then yeah, we'll never go there again."

Dianna reclined against the chair she was in, taking in deep breaths to regain all the breath she had lost. Once she and Rosemary reached the top of the cliff, they ran straight back home, not slowing down one bit. Dianna couldn't help but think back to the man they had run into on the beach, a slight blush staining her cheeks. She was grateful he had let the two of them go, but she couldn't help but wonder who he was, and whether there was a chance of seeing him again.

* * *

Fergus sat in his room, what used to be his parents room, just staring at the wall. This place brought back so many memories, all of which pained him. He missed his parents, and his wife and child terribly. It brought tears to his eyes whenever he thought of them, how they were all slaughtered in their sleep, and how his son never had the chance to really grow up, and enjoy life. Having taken him so long to return from Ostagar, Fergus had been afraid that his brother too had been killed as well, but then heard he was leading the attack in the final battle against the darkspawn. Finally making his way to Denerim, he met up with his brother after the battle. Fergus found that Aedan was…different from how he remembered him. He had always been curt in his dealings with other people, but he had never seen him so angry, and commanding, and…just dark. Fergus had a feeling that it was something that happened that night when Howe took over Highever that caused such a change in his brother, or something that started the transformation within him. What he saw now in his brother, was not the person he had grown up with, but someone else entirely.

Hearing a knock at his door, Fergus got to his feet and opened it.

"I apologize for disrupting you my Lord," the male servant apologized as he held out a letter to him, "But this just arrived from…his majesty."

"It is alright, this sort of thing best not wait, especially when it is my brother," Fergus said.

The man bowed, and then took his leave. Closing the door, Fergus sat down at the desk in the room, and began to open the letter. Fergus was hoping it wasn't another notice to him that Aedan would be coming again, because he really didn't want to have to deal with his brother again. It felt like he was just here anyway, having arrived over a month ago and stayed for just over a week while on a wild goose chase for a pair of fugitives, before he had to return to Denerim for the Royal Wedding, on which Fergus had to attend as well. He really had only been away from his brother for just barely two weeks. Pulling out the letter, and reading over it, it was as he feared. Aedan was coming again, to resume his search for this Alistair and Olyvia he was hell-bent on finding. Aedan was expected to arrive within two weeks, and Fergus groaned when he saw he was expecting a lavish welcome, since he was the king. That meant Fergus would have to throw a sort of party. He would have to invite all of the wealthy families in Highever to have a decent enough of a crowd to suit Aedan's "needs", though Fergus was tempted to just invite the whole city so it would be likely to have a crowd. Even though Aedan hadn't been crowned king for long, he already made himself rather unpopular, and disliked by the people. Fergus wouldn't be surprised if no one accepted the invitation, but then again, they would only come out of fear that Aedan would bring his wrath down upon them for not accepting the privilege to see him.

"Great…this is going to be…a nightmare," Fergus groaned, running his hands down his face.

He loved his brother, yes, because he was his brother, but he had changed so much from how he once knew him, that he could hardly stand to be around him anymore. Pushing himself away from the desk, he headed out to find the most recent city census to get the names of the wealthier citizens, which one had been done when he had been reinstated as Teyrn, because Aedan would probably find them just barely suitable, but they would be enough for a crowd. If anyone showed up.

Reaching his study, he sifted through the documents there until he found what he was looking for, and laid it out on his study, and readied a quill and some ink. Tonight was going to be a long night.

As he sifted through the names, he found his mind wandering instead of focusing on his most recent task, when the face of the woman he saw that afternoon popped into his mind. His heart clenched painfully remembering it. She reminded him so much of Oriana, with the same oval face, and full lips, and large eyes. He had frozen for a few seconds when he first saw her, taken away by the resemblance, before he found his words again. She was quite…beautiful, but it also hurt, thinking about her. There were many differences between her and Oriana, of course. While Oriana had short fiery red hair and light brown eyes, this woman had long hazel brown hair that cascaded down her back, and bright jade green eyes. As much as it hurt though, he just couldn't get her out of his mind, because of those similarities, and how beautiful he thought she was. He sighed heavily. He doubted he would see her again though. She was most likely a refugee, like most of the others in the city, he assumed because she didn't seem to recognize him as the Teyrn, while most of the citizens who had lived here for most or all of their lives knew his face. He would just have to put her out of his mind, and go back to living his lonely life. Perhaps someday he would marry again, but it would take him some time yet to heal over his great loss.

* * *

Dianna was cleaning in the kitchen when her mother came tearing into the house, shouting to everyone that they had gotten another letter from Olyvia. Dropping everything, Dianna raced into the living room and slid to a stop on her knees in front of her mother who had sat down in a chair. Rosemary arrived next, coming down the stairs two at a time, nearly causing her to face plant at the bottom, but managed to catch herself, and plopped down on the floor beside her sister. Since their dad was at work, Brenda went ahead and started opening up the letter, when Dianna noticed a rather fancy envelope still sitting on her lap.

"What is that?" Dianna asked, pointing at the envelope.

Brenda paused, "Oh, something that came from Highever Castle. It can wait."

Dianna nodded in agreement, "Yes. Olyvia's letter is so much more important."

Unfolding the letter, Brenda began reading it aloud for her daughters. The beginning was typical, saying how much she missed them, and how life was going for her. It was toward the middle of the letter that had the big news though.

"Now that it has been some time to be sure of mine and Alistair's suspicions, I am now letting you know that I…"

Brenda let out a scream, sounding shocked, and thrilled at the same time, a hand flying to her mouth.

"What? She's what?" Rosemary asked.

"She's pregnant!" Brenda exclaimed.

The two sister's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates before Rosemary started squealing in delight too, causing Dianna to fall over backwards from the force of her voice.

"Ow! Rosemary, can't you be a little quieter?" Dianna asked.

"I'm excited! Livy is going to have a baby!" Rosemary said excitedly.

"Oh, I wish more than ever to see her now," Brenda said sadly.

"Maybe after she has the baby," Dianna said, "That way, you'll be able to help her with the baby, and get to meet your grandkid."

Brenda nodded, "That would be better. Oh I'm so excited for her! It's going to be tough though, having a baby in this day and age."

Dianna nodded in agreement, "I bet. So what else is going on?"

Brenda picked the letter back up, and resumed where she left off, a huge grin spreading across Rosemary's face at the thought of becoming an aunt.

"Give everyone hugs for me, and my love. Love Olyvia," Brenda finished the letter.

"Livy's going to have a baby!" Rosemary squealed.

"Now what is the other letter?" Dianna asked, "I am somewhat interested to see what that contains."

Opening up the next envelope, Brenda pulled out the parchment inside, and scanned over it, a frown etching into her features.

"Not good, I take it," Dianna muttered.

"Well, that Aedan character who is now the king is coming here again," Brenda said, knowing full well that he was searching after _her_ daughter, "And the Teyrn is throwing a welcoming party for him the eve of his arrival, and we're invited. Why would the Teyrn throw a party for _him_?"

"One, he's the king and probably ordered it," Dianna began, "and two, Aedan is Teyrn Cousland's brother, so that is another possible reason of why."

"I feel so sorry for the Teyrn to have him as his brother," Rosemary muttered.

"As do I," Dianna said, "So when is this 'party'?"

"On the eighteenth," Brenda replied.

"Eighteenth!?" Dianna exclaimed, "That's just…eleven days away! And how are we invited anyway? I thought we were nobodies!"

"Well…we are rather wealthy," Brenda said, "due to the money I earn doing alterations, and what your father earns with his job. I don't know if that's it, or what, but I am not going to be going. That man is after my daughter, aiming to kill her! I won't go to anything celebratory in his honor."

"Uh…well Mom, that might look bad on us," Dianna said, "If he figures out that someone didn't show, imagine how angry he'd get. From what Livy told us, he has quite the temper."

Brenda sighed, "I guess you're right."

"What are we going to wear then?" Rosemary asked in horror, "Eleven days isn't enough time to make anything."

"You have dresses that will work," Brenda said.

"We do?" Dianna asked.

Brenda sighed, "Come on girls, follow me, and I'll show you."

* * *

The days just seemed to fly by, and before Fergus knew it, he was waiting in the main hall for his brother to arrive. He was just run ragged dealing with all the preparations that had to be made for his arrival, but he was trying his hardest to look pleased to see his brother. As Aedan strode into the main hall, Fergus walked toward him to greet him.

"I am pleased to see you have made it safely brother," Fergus said.

"It's your majesty now," Aedan said bitterly.

Fergus's face fell slightly, "We're still brothers though."

"Then I guess I can let it slide just this once," Aedan said, "So what are your plans for this evening?"

"Well…we are holding a gala in the castle to welcome you back home," Fergus said, "As you asked. The guests will be arriving just before sunset."

"Glad to hear it," Aedan said lowly, "May I be brought to my chambers? I wish to rest a little from my trip. I am a very busy man, and after tonight, I have a lot of work to do."

Fergus nodded, "Yes…your majesty."

Turning to one of the servants, he asked for him to escort _his majesty_ to his quarters for his stay, and the servant bowed reverently to the both of them before leading Aedan towards his rooms. Fergus sighed dejectedly. That man…was not his brother.

* * *

"Mom…is this really necessary?" Dianna asked as her mother worked away at putting her hair up into a nice, elegant bun.

"Yes," Brenda replied, "A lot of people have been invited to this event, and I am willing to bet there will be many young men there as well tonight. It wouldn't do you any harm to meet a nice young man."

Dianna sighed and rolled her eyes, "You just want a daughter to get married and have kids that you can actually see more often."

"Dianna, you are twenty-three," Brenda said, "You aren't getting any younger and you won't be living with us forever. You deserve to find someone and be happy with."

Dianna groaned, "Well, maybe I'm not interested in finding anyone right now."

"Doesn't matter, I'm going to doll you up for tonight," Brenda said.

"Too bad Livy isn't here," Rosemary commented, poking her head in through the open doorway leading into the powder room they had, "She was really good with the makeup."

"I think I can manage that on my own," Dianna said, "Mom is more worried about the hair."

After another half hour of working with the hair, Brenda finally finished, and Dianna worked on the makeup herself, using what Olyvia would call the natural colors on her skin to let her natural beauty shine. Then she next turned onto Rosemary, putting some on her as well, though she wasn't all too thrilled about it. Since she was finished with the rest of her outfit, Dianna looked over herself in the full-length mirror in the powder room. She was wearing a flattering dark green gown, with an upside down V cutout in the skirt, showing the jade green color beneath. She liked the sleeves the most though, the long, wide tapering sleeves, making her feel very elegant. The v-neckline dipped down just enough to show just the tiniest bit of cleavage, just enough to give off some appeal without looking like she was trying too hard. Her mother really wanted her to get married, didn't she?

"We look so pretty!" Rosemary exclaimed, a huge grin on her face as she spun around.

She was wearing a flowing lilac colored dress that she wore a structured long sleeved shrug over, just a shade darker than the dress, and her hair was pulled back in a half ponytail, a white flower clipped in at the back of it. Dianna's own bun had a handful of tiny white flowers put in it as well, not overwhelming the hairstyle, or covering it up, but just enough to add a little bit of interest in it.

"I don't think I want to go," Dianna groaned, starting to feel a little sick that her mom was treating this like a matchmaking event.

"You have to go! Don't make me go with just Mom and Dad!" Rosemary wailed.

"You realize that we're probably going to have to dance though, right?" Dianna asked, "We don't know any dances so we'll just look like fools!"

Rosemary pursed her lips in thought, "Then we'll just linger around to prevent any dancing."

Dianna sighed, and then the two heard their mother calling for them, telling them it was time to go. With another groan, Dianna pulled on her dark green cloak to help stave off the winter chill and headed downstairs with her sister. She would just have to do her best to be invisible tonight, and from years of practice, she believed she could do it.

* * *

As the time for the guest to start arriving grew nearer, Fergus grew more ill. He had a feeling tonight would turn into a disaster, and he would be the one that had to clean up the mess. As he stared out of his bedroom window, trying to forget about the impending party, his mind wandered back to that woman he saw at the beach. He hadn't been able to get her out of his head since that day, and he was willing to bet that was part of what contributed to his depressed mood.

"Are you still moping about in here?" he heard a voice ask.

Turning around he saw that it was his brother. He should have figured, since he was the only one who would speak to him in that way.

"Does being here not bring back unwanted memories that you would rather forget?" Fergus asked in reply.

"Of course it does," Aedan spat, "I was actually here that night."

"You think I wanted to be gone?" Fergus asked, "I didn't want to leave, but I had to. I was following through with my orders. I would have stayed, if Father didn't want me to leave that afternoon."

"I've been able to get over it," Aedan said, "Being here does bring back some of the memories, but I just push them away. I have other things to think about, other things to take care of."

"Perhaps you're only able to get over it, because of what you saw that night," Fergus said, "I…I have no closure over what happened to Oriana and Oren. All I have, is the word of others of what happened that night."

"Do you think really knowing will help any then?" Aedan asked, his eyes narrowing, "Because you can hear it straight from the sole survivor of that night of what happened, if you think it will help. Question is, do you really want to know how they died?"

Fergus's heart fell into the pit of his stomach, "No…that's not what I want. I don't know what will help me, but I know that won't."

"Then stop whining and buck up," Aedan snapped, "You are now the Teyrn of Highever, don't make yourself look weak."

And with that he turned and strode out of the room. Fergus squeezed his eyes shut, a few tears escaping and sliding down his cheeks. His brother just didn't understand. He didn't lose someone that was as much of a part of him as Oriana and Oren were to Fergus.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, he took a few moments to clear his head before making his way to the main hall. He had to be present to welcome his guests.

* * *

"I'm starting to feel sick," Rosemary lamented as they passed through the outer gates leading to the castle.

"You think you are? I've been feeling sick," Dianna muttered.

"I'm sure you both have little to worry about," Brenda said.

"Except for running into _his majesty_," Dianna drawled.

Brenda pursed her lips, "I doubt he'll be mingling much among the others. He thinks very highly of himself after all, but you are right, that wouldn't be good if we did."

"Especially if he figures out who we're related to," Dianna muttered, "He knows Rosemary is one of Olyvia's sisters. He hasn't seen any of us with her though so I suggest we keep Rosemary in the back of the crowd since she'll be hard to see due to her height."

Rosemary frowned up at her sister, "I'm not that short anymore! I've gotten taller!"

"By a few millimeters, maybe," Dianna retorted.

Rosemary growled in frustration, but Brenda silenced the two of them as they came to the main doors. It was time to act civilized now. Their father handed the invitation to a man standing at the door collecting them, and he welcomed them in. Dianna and Rosemary stood closer together, linking their arms together as they followed their parents inside. Dianna was busy staring at the floor as they walked in and came to a stop so she didn't notice what her sister had.

"Oh my gosh!" Rosemary said in a hushed voice, "Dianna! That's…that's the guy we saw at the beach!"

Dianna whipped her head up, her cheeks turning scarlet when she saw the man, and her eyes grew wide as he welcomed her parents, and their family, to his home. Her heart started to pound wildly in her chest. She had no idea that he was the _Teyrn_!

"I'm going to puke," Dianna whispered, quickly turning her face away so he wouldn't notice her.

"Are you going to say anything to him?" Rosemary asked quietly.

"Of course not!" Dianna replied, "One does not simply speak to the Teyrn. Let's just…walk on into the hall and act like we didn't notice him."

As they went to go though, he noticed her, his eyes widening in shock.

"You!" he exclaimed in shock.

Dianna screeched to a halt, her blush reaching all the way to her ears as she slowly turned her head to face him. To her, it sounded like he was just referring to her, and not her and her sister.

"I-I-I…uh...yes…me," Dianna stammered, "Um…good evening, your Lordship."

With another quick bow, she tugged on Rosemary's arm as she surged forward, following her parents into the next room. Fergus opened his mouth to say something, call her back, almost going to go after her when he stopped. He had more guests arriving, and he couldn't just leave his post and not greet the others. He reluctantly stepped back to where he had been standing, and forced a smile on his face as he greeted the next guests. His heart was just hammering away in his chest. He was so shocked to see her, and was a little surprised with himself that he was…glad to see her again. Once all the guests had arrived, he promised himself he would go speak with her. Even though he didn't know much about this woman, he was already captivated by her.

* * *

Dianna could hardly breathe as she pressed herself up against the wall as they entered what she would call the ballroom, panicking over the fact that the man she and her sister ran into at the beach was the Teyrn of Highever _and_ remembered her. Though…really, who would forget two strange girls trespassing on their land? He didn't seem to recall Rosemary's presence though, having made to statement as he did with her so Dianna couldn't help but freak out a little.

"Dianna? You okay?" Rosemary asked.

"No, I am not okay!" Dianna replied shrilly, "How does he remember me? Just me?"

"Maybe he thinks you are pretty," Rosemary said with a sly grin.

Dianna's blush darkened, "I-I doubt that."

"Then what other reason can you think of?" Rosemary asked.

Dianna thought over it for a few seconds, "Because I was the one who did the talking when he found us trespassing on his land?"

Rosemary shrugged, "Whatever, think what you want to think."

The two stood there in silence, watching as the crowd of people milled about the room, speaking with each other.

"So…what now?" Rosemary asked.

"We stand here?" Dianna replied uncertainly.

"Sounds good," Rosemary said, leaning against the wall beside her sister.

Dianna sighed heavily. This was going to be a long night.

* * *

It seemed like an eternity before the guests stopped arriving and Fergus was finally able to leave the main hall and join his guests. He first headed up onto the balcony overlooking the dance hall, where his brother was standing. It also would give him a good vantage point to look for that Dianna girl. He was just dying to speak with her.

"Are you going to be standing up here all night?" Fergus asked his brother as he went to stand beside him.

"I'm not exactly eager to join the festivities," Aedan said, "I can enjoy myself just fine up here, but I will eventually make my way down."

Fergus looked over to his brother after scanning through part of the crowd, "You said you wanted this, yet you don't look all that happy to be here."

"I'm never happy," Aedan said darkly, narrowing his gaze at his brother, "And you know damn well why."

"Aedan," Fergus said, not caring if he berated him for not addressing him by his title, "You can't go on like this. You're going to let this hate for that man tear you apart."

"It is _not_ just the man that I hate!" Aedan hissed, "It is that damn woman of his as well! Or have you forgotten what she did to me!"

Aedan ripped back his sleeve to show the severe scar on his arm where Olyvia had stabbed him at the Landsmeet, crippling his sword arm for the rest of his life. It was also partially Morrigan's fault, since she gave no care into healing it properly. If he ever found that swamp witch, he would make sure she got the punishment she deserved also.

"Why can't you let this go?" Fergus asked, "They really are no threat to you, why do you treat them in such a way?"

"They are a threat Fergus!" Aedan snapped, "As long as Alistair is alive, there is still the possibility of him returning to attempt to usurp the throne. And as for that wench…she destroyed my life, so I will destroy her."

Fergus looked at his brother empathetically, "What happened to you Aedan? This is not the brother I remember."

"Howe happened, remember?" Aedan replied bitterly, "And don't forget the Blight because that is where Alistair and Olyvia came into the picture. I had to become the person who could deal with the situations given to me, and it needed a firm hand, not a yielding one. Don't think I have changed a lot Fergus, because I haven't. You just didn't know me as well as you thought you did."

"Aedan," Fergus said, hurt that Aedan thought he didn't know him. He knew him better than anyone. At least…before the Blight.

"It's your majesty," Aedan said before walking away to head down to the main floor.

Fergus's face fell as he stared down at the floor. He couldn't believe what his brother had changed into, and all because he couldn't handle his anger. Instead of venting, he let it consume him, and warp him into something unrecognizable. With a sigh, Fergus turned and headed down as well. He needed to be among others, so he didn't feel quite so alone.

* * *

Dianna and Rosemary had sidled their way along the wall to the buffet tables where they had gotten themselves a drink, and to try to ease their boredom, scanned the room for any familiar faces. There were a few Rosemary recognized, having made a few friends with some of their neighbors, but there was one face in particular that Dianna saw that made her blood boil. Aedan Cousland, his _royal highness_, or as she liked to refer to him in her head, the jackass that was trying to kill her sister. She saw that Teyrn Cousland was speaking with him, and it looked like they were having a rather intense conversation when Aedan stormed off, heading down the stairway to their floor. Dianna kept a sharp eye on him and began to panic when he started heading toward the buffet tables.

"Quick Rosemary! Into the crowd!" Dianna whispered urgently as she pushed Rosemary into the throng of people.

"Ah! Why?" Rosemary asked, just catching herself before she face planted.

"His royal pompousness is on his way," Dianna whispered.

Rosemary's eyes grew wide and she panicked for a few seconds before darting into the crowd. Dianna then began moving along the wall, hoping to avoid him herself. Stopping in the corner, well away from the tables, she let herself breathe. This was a little too stressful for her, her heart was hammering away in her chest like a caged bird. As she tried to catch her breath, a young man approached her. He had strawberry blond hair and a beard, and he looked rather stern.

"And what is a beauty like you doing over here all alone?" he asked with a lewd smirk.

"C-catching my breath," Dianna could honestly reply, "It's uh…quite lively in here."

Which was also true, the dancing going on in the center of the room being a lively dance. She hadn't been dancing though, but she definitely looked like she did, from how much she was just stressing out over the situation.

"Would you care to dance again?" the man asked, assuming she had meant she had been dancing.

"Um…thank you for the offer, but I am afraid I may pass out if I try again so soon," Dianna replied, "I would very much like to catch my breath."

"Then perhaps later?" he asked.

Dianna wracked her brain for some excuse to get away. She just did not get a good feeling about the man, and her gut was telling her to get away as fast as she could.

"Uh…oh, I apologize but I have just spotted my sister," she lied, "I've been looking for her since we first got here. If you'll excuse me."

Slipping past him, she began to make her way through the crowd, and as she nearly made it to the other side of the room, she ran into someone who suddenly stepped into her path.

"I am so sorry I—," she froze as she stared up directly into Aedan's glaring green eyes.

"YOU!" he roared.

Dianna swallowed hard. This didn't look good.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I expect to get rather busy this coming month, so I'll try to keep up with updates as much as I can. December is a **_**crazy**_** month.**

**csorciere: You'll soon find out why he recognized her. I almost forgot myself before I double checked when writing this. And I love, love Fergus too. I wanted to give him a hug in the game from everything that happened to him. And yes, Aedan will be **_**pissed**_**. He will be completely unredeemable by the end of this chapter.**

**starry-eyed-vixen: I thought this would be such a perfect complement to the other stories, plus show you what is going on in Ferelden so I don't have to agonizingly, tediously explain it in Allegiance.**

**Kira Tamarion: Why thank you! :) And you'll see just how far off the rails Aedan is this chapter.**

**Pollyanna24: Yes, he does need love.**

**Isala Uthenera: I have another one hooked! Yes! lol, I'm kidding…sort of. I'm happy to see you're enjoying it though.**

**AeroSpyder: Here's more! :D**

**CHAPTER TWO**

Dianna's body was filled with terror as Aedan stared down at her. She wasn't exactly sure how he knew her, or remembered her for that matter.

"M-me?" Dianna squeaked, "I-I-I'm afraid I don't understand."

"You're that serving wench that hit me at the Gnawed Noble Tavern," Aedan growled, pointing an accusing finger at her.

Dianna hoped she was pulling off a confused look instead of a frightened countenance, "Serving wench? I-I'm afraid you must be thinking of the wrong person. I-I've never worked a day in my life. Once again, I apologize for bumping into you, if you'll excuse me."

She went to go when a hand viciously wrapped around her wrist, tugging her back.

"Don't play dumb with me," Aedan growled, "You are that girl."

"A-and if I was, what then?" Dianna asked.

"You hit me!" Aedan snapped.

Dianna frowned, "And you well deserved it! Grabbing me like you did."

"So you are the girl," Aedan said.

"Yes, I am," Dianna growled, "Now release me, I have done nothing wrong."

"Nothing wrong? Nothing wrong?" Aedan asked skeptically, "You hit me, and you just now ran into me."

"When I hit you, you weren't the king, so it holds no precedence now," Dianna said, "As for the running into you, I apologized."

Aedan tugged her closer, to where they were only a few inches apart, leering over her.

"What if I say an apology isn't enough," he said lowly, a lewd glint in his eye as he gazed down over her.

Dianna's stomach churned, "Then I guess it isn't enough. Will you please let me go…your majesty? People are staring, and imagine what sort of gossip will reach your wife's ears."

"My _wife_ knows I have many dalliances to suit my needs," Aedan growled, "You will just be another number amongst them."

"Please…your majesty, there is nothing I can offer you," Dianna whimpered, his grip on her starting to pain her.

"To me, it looks like you have a lot to offer," he said lowly, his eyes moving to the dip of her neckline.

Dianna began to panic even more now. There was no one who would stand up against him to stop him from doing what he well pleased. Tears welled up in her eyes thinking of what horrible things he would inflict upon her body, when suddenly she found herself being pulled away, and Aedan's hand ripped away from her own.

"What do you think you are doing Aedan?"

Dianna turned to find that none other than Teyrn Cousland had come to her rescue, and her whole body went weak from relief. She was more than grateful that he had intervened, but she was pretty sure it was only his relation as a brother to Aedan that made him bold enough to do so.

"I'm trying to enjoy myself here, Fergus," Aedan spat, "I thought you wanted me to enjoy myself."

"I don't want you harassing my guests though," Fergus said.

"_Your_ guests?" Aedan growled.

"Yes, _my_ guests," Fergus replied, staring down his brother, "This is my home, and they are here because of my invitation. They are not here for you to merely intimidate for your fun. So leave the guests be, _your majesty_."

Aedan's eyes narrowed at him, "Who do you think you are to order me, your king?"

"I am your older brother," Fergus retorted, "And I am doing my duty as your brother to put you in your place, no matter your status."  
"You know what I can do to you for this," Aedan threatened.

"And then what?" Fergus asked, "Would you give the Teyrn to Thomas Howe? For good measure?"

Aedan's face contorted in anger, and Dianna began to back away. The Teyrn certainly had some guts, to say all that he had been saying to him.

"Just because you are my brother…I am going to let this go," Aedan growled, "Try something like this again though, I won't be as lenient."

Turning on his heel, he then stormed out of the room, the guests quickly scurrying out of his path to avoid his wrath. Dianna went to go when the Teyrn turned to her.

"I apologize for my brother," he said, "He has not…been himself lately."

"It would do his majesty more good if he just humbled himself and apologized," Dianna said, blushing when she realized what exactly she said, "I-I'm sorry my Lord. That was not my place to say such a thing."

"It is alright," Fergus said, "It is what I think most days."

"Thank you…for stopping him," Dianna said, massaging her sore wrist, "I…I was afraid of what he would do."

"It was the least I could do," Fergus replied, and then noticed her nursing her hand, "Did he hurt you?"

"I-it's just a bruise," she said, "Nothing serious."

Dianna was sure her whole body turned red as he took hold of her hand, and inspected her already bruising wrist. She was surprised at first by how gentle his touch was, and also from the shock that went through her body when he touched her skin.

"Again, I apologize," Fergus said.

"You have nothing to apologize for, my Lord," Dianna said.

"I wish that were the case," Fergus said with a heavy sigh.

He let go of her hand, and Dianna let it drop back to her side.

"So um…thank you again. I-I'll just uh…go now," Dianna muttered.

"Wait!" Fergus said as Dianna turned to leave, and she paused, "I…I was actually hoping to speak with you."

Dianna's face turned scarlet as she turned back around to face him, "A-about?"

A faint blush stained the Teyrn's face as he shyly averted his gaze, "Um…I-I just have a few questions to ask you…if that is alright?"

"Well who am I to refuse an audience with my Lord?" Dianna replied nervously.

"If you'd rather not, you can say no," Fergus said.

"As a thank you for helping me, I will…answer your questions," Dianna said, hoping she wouldn't regret this.

The Teyrn nodded, and then walked a short distance away from the crowd so they wouldn't be as easily overheard, and Dianna slowly followed, stopping a few feet away from him.

"You are the girl I saw two weeks ago…aren't you?" he asked, turning to face her, "Dianna, correct?"

She blushed, "Y-yes…that was me."

"I have to admit, I didn't think you were one of the wealthier families in Highever," Fergus said.

"I kind of give that impression," Dianna muttered.

"If I may ask, what family do you come from?" he asked.

Dianna was a little confused, "Y-you mean what is my surname?"

He nodded, and Dianna felt like she was going to pass out from how freaked out she was feeling from this interrogation.

"It's uh…Hamilton," Dianna replied.

Fergus was silent for a few moments, looking as if he was trying to remember something, before he spoke again, "I also assume that you had no idea who I was."

Dianna shook her head, "N-no my Lord. We only r-r-recently moved here, within the last four to five months."

And he had only been Teyrn for the last two and a half months basically so that would explain why she didn't recognize him.

"I'm sorry that I didn't know who you were," Dianna said quickly, afraid that he would be upset with her.

"Do not worry about it," he said, "It didn't bother me in the least, but it did pique my curiosity."

Dianna averted her gaze, her blush darkening. She felt that at this rate, her face would just spontaneously combust into a giant ball of flame.

"Is that uh…all your questions…my Lord?" Dianna asked.

"Just one more," he said, "Would you…honor me with a dance?"

Dianna's face felt like it was on fire now, from how madly she was blushing, mostly because of him asking to dance, and partly because the music had just changed to a slower song.

"I…o-of course my Lord," Dianna stammered.

Fergus held out a hand to her, and she shakily placed her hand in his. He escorted her out to the floor, and Dianna's entire body was just buzzing from her nerves as he pulled her into the dancing position, one arm wrapping around her waist, placing his hand on the small of her back. Dianna began to feel a little sick again, nervous that she would make herself look like a complete fool because she didn't know the dance, but as they danced, she found he was easily leading her through all the steps, despite her not knowing them at all. Daring to look up in his eyes, her heart leapt into her throat as their gaze locked. She had never before seen anyone look at her in the way he was at that moment, making her heart race, her chest grow warm, and butterflies erupt in her stomach.

When the dance came to an end, Dianna found that she was a little disappointed that it ended so soon. She really had been enjoying herself. As they stepped apart, she looked down shyly, unable to look him in the eye again.

"Thank you again, my Lord," Dianna said with a reverent bow, "May you have a lovely rest of your evening."

And not giving him a chance to say something in return, she quickly sped away, intent to hide herself for the rest of the evening.

* * *

Dianna was so glad to finally be home as she flopped down onto her bed. She had a very stressful evening. All she wanted to do now was sleep.

"Aren't you going to change out of your dress?" Rosemary asked as she undressed herself.

"No. Too tired," Dianna muttered.

Rosemary sighed, and went over and pulled her sister's shoes off, and Dianna growled at her.

"Don't touch a-me," Dianna growled lowly.

"Mom won't be very happy with you sleeping in your dress," Rosemary said, walking over to her dresser and pulling her own dress over her head.

Dianna turned her face back down into her pillow, "Don't you have any decency?"

"You're my sister, I don't really care," Rosemary replied, "Now change out of your dress."

Dianna grumbled under her breath as she pushed herself up and headed over to her dresser, pulling out the tunic she wore to bed and then stepped behind the partition in their room to undress. Tossing the gown she wore over the partition, she pulled on the tunic and then shuffled back over to her bed, flopping back down onto it and tossing the blanket over. Once Rosemary finished getting ready for bed herself, she blew out the lamps in the room and climbed into bed as well.

"Did you…have at least a little bit of fun tonight?" Rosemary asked after a few minutes of silence.

Dianna sighed. Rosemary just could not keep quiet.

"I did manage to have…a little," Dianna replied, blushing when she remembered the dance with the Teyrn. That…really was the highlight of her evening.

"I saw you danced with the Teyrn," Rosemary said, "Was he nice?"

"Yeah…he is really nice," Dianna replied quietly.

"Do you like him?"

Dianna frowned, "Rosemary, not only have I just met the man, he is also the Teyrn, and I doubt I will ever see him again. Besides, it's not like there _could_ be anything between us. I'm just a common civilian, he's nobility."

"You do like him, don't you?" Rosemary asked, and Dianna could hear that she was grinning.

"No, I don't!" Dianna retorted.

"I bet he likes you."

"I doubt it. Once again, have only just met and hardly spoke to each other. Now shush, and go to bed."

"But I'm not ti—," Rosemary began.

"SHUSH!" Dianna growled, "Me sleepy. Shut mouth, and close eyes Midget."

Rosemary grumbled under her breath, but said nothing else out loud. Grateful that she had quieted down, Dianna settled herself into her bed, and thought about the night's events as her mind eventually gave way into dreams.

* * *

Three days had passed since the gala, and Fergus found himself thinking constantly about Dianna. He didn't feel depressed any time her face popped into his mind either. It wasn't so much of she reminded him of Oriana anymore, but more of he was just so…bewitched by this woman, entranced by her beauty and he wanted to get to know her more than what he knew already. The chances of seeing her by chance were slim, but he could always find where she lived and…stumble across her, or if he was bold enough, just go and ask if he could see her. She was from a wealthy family, there was nothing… exactly _wrong_ with that, though others would say he should court, and then marry, someone with a higher status.

As much as he wanted to see her again, he just didn't have the guts to do it. He thought he had been nervous when asking to court Oriana, but this was on a whole different scale. Fergus wasn't sure what it was, whether he felt inept at the task, or if it was because he found Dianna much more attractive than Oriana was. He still thought Oriana a beautiful woman, but when compared to Dianna, despite how similar their appearance, Dianna was a much more striking woman.

Sitting in his study, Fergus was relishing his brother's absence, who was out scouring the streets for information on his fugitives. He was starting to feel rather depressed though, thinking about Dianna again, wondering when…or if he'd see her again, when his peace and quiet was ended abruptly.

"Nothing! I have been to each corner in Highever, and still nothing!" Aedan roared as he ripped off his gauntlets and slapped them down onto the desk Fergus was working at, "I am just so…frustrated! This is infuriating!"

Fergus sighed, and moved aside the gauntlets so he could see his work, and continued on with it. Aedan sat down in a chair across from the desk, and he stared at him with a sour expression.

"Why are you looking depressed?" Aedan asked, "It's not like you have this problem."

Fergus shot a glare at him before looking back down at his work.

"Oh, I get it, you're thinking about _Oriana _and _Oren_ again, aren't you?" Aedan asked, as if annoyed by the fact.

"Not that it is any of your concern, or that you really care, but I actually am not thinking about either of them," Fergus replied.

Aedan paused, "No? Really, that is a shock. Oh wait…let me guess, has Fergus finally been able to move on himself? Is he thinking about another woman?"

He knew his brother was being sarcastic, and that rather irritated him.

"What is her name?" Aedan asked when Fergus said nothing.

"That is none of your concern either," Fergus replied, keeping his attention on the document.

Aedan grimaced, "Don't tell me it's that serving wench from Denerim."

Fergus looked up at his brother with a confused face, "Who?"

"The woman you stopped me from enjoying her company that night at the gala," Aedan replied, "The first time I met her she was a serving wench at the Tavern in Denerim."

"If she was a serving wench, then how did she manage to be one of the wealthiest families here in Denerim?" Fergus asked.

Aedan shrugged, "I don't know, but she is the same wench. I wouldn't forget because she punched me in the face."

"And you probably deserved it," Fergus muttered, looking back down at his paper.

Aedan rolled his eyes, "So what is her name?"  
"And why should I give it to you?" Fergus asked with an exasperated sigh.

"Because I asked, and not only am I your brother, I'm the King," Aedan replied.

Fergus pursed his lips together before replying, "Her name is Dianna. Dianna Hamilton."

Fergus jumped as Aedan slammed his fists down onto the desk, his face contorted in fury.

"Did you just say…Hamilton?" he seethed.

"Yes, why?"

"HAMILTON!" Aedan roared, "As in Olyvia Hamilton, as in the bitch who ruined my arm, who ruined my life! Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"I did not know your fugitive's surname," Fergus rebutted, though if he had known, he wouldn't have said anything because he knew he just put Dianna and her family in danger.

Aedan stormed over to the bookshelves in the study, and when he found what he wanted, ripped out the documents from the shelf, and began searching through it. Fergus recognized it as the census record, which also had the addresses of the residents.

"Aedan, Hamilton is not that uncommon of a surname. What reason do you have to believe that they are related to this Olyvia?" Fergus asked.

"If I can't find traces of Olyvia myself, then I will find it through her family, wherever they are," Aedan said, "I don't care if go to ten wrong households, I will find them, and I will get my answers out of them. I _will_ find that wench!"

After searching for a few more seconds, he seemed to have found what he wanted, ripped out the page, slammed the book shut, and then grabbed his gauntlets off the desk, viciously shoving them back on as he strode out the door, calling for his men. Fergus pushed himself away from his desk and took off after his brother.

"Aedan! Just wait for a second!" Fergus shouted after him.

"You can't stop me Fergus!" Aedan rebutted.

"As Teyrn of Highever, I am going to tell you to at least not harm them!" Fergus ordered, "They are my people, and under my protection. I won't let you hurt them."

"Afraid your little fascination will get hurt?" Aedan said snidely.

"I am not—," Fergus began.

"Oh save your breath," Aedan interrupted, "I know the only reason you are intrigued by her is the similarity between her and Oriana. Didn't think I'd notice, did you?"

Fergus stopped, his heart lurching in his chest. That…that wasn't the only reason! Aedan just didn't know what he was talking about. The comment gave him enough time to leave his brother's presence, and Fergus knew he had to do something to try to stop Aedan from causing too much harm. Rushing to his quarters, he grabbed his armor and began to put it on. There was no telling how this would end.

* * *

Dianna was helping her mother clean the main room when they heard the thundering of hooves against the cobblestone roadway. Squinting out the window, Dianna's eyes then grew wide as she saw Aedan dismount his horse at the gate to their property.

"Mom!" Dianna squeaked, "We're in trouble."

Brenda looked up, and turned pale as she saw him and his whole troupe of soldiers following behind him. Before they knew it, the front door was being thrown open and Aedan stepped through the threshold, his men rushing in behind him.

"What is the meaning of this?" Brenda cried, "How dare you just barge into my home!"

"I have every right to do so," Aedan growled, "Now where is your daughter?"

"Are you asking for Dianna, or Rosemary?" Brenda growled in reply.

"NEITHER!" Aedan roared, making both of them cringe, "Where is your daughter Olyvia?"

Dianna began to tremble in terror, wondering how he knew she was a part of their family. Or did he? Maybe he was just trying to trick them.

"I have no daughter by that name," Brenda replied.

Aedan roared in frustration, "Lies! It has to be! Where have you hidden her?"

The two were roughly shoved down onto their knees, and Dianna began to tremble even more violently as Aedan stepped toward her, and then crouched down, grabbing her by her face and turning it up to face his.

"Tell me where she is, and I might just spare your daughter the loss of her innocence," Aedan said, briefly looking over to Brenda.

Brenda began to weep, "Please, you have the wrong people. Leave my daughter be."

Aedan grabbed Dianna roughly by her hair, making her whimper in pain as he pulled her a little closer, "That wasn't the answer I wanted to hear."

"Oi! Stupid head!" a voice shouted from up the stairs.

Aedan released Dianna and turned to see who had said that. When his gaze landed on Rosemary standing at the top of the stairs, his eyes grew wide.

"YOU! I know you! You _are_ Olyvia's family!" Aedan then whirled to Brenda and drew his sword, placing it at her neck, "You lied to me wench. Now tell me where she is."

"I did not lie to you," Brenda said tersely, "because of you…I have no daughter by the name of Olyvia…not anymore."

Aedan paused, "Do you believe her dead?"

"She may as well be, even if she isn't," Brenda replied, "I haven't seen her since we left Denerim, just before the Landsmeet."

"LIES!" Aedan roared pressing the sword a little harder against her neck, "You must have seen her! She was married here in Highever!"

Brenda looked up at him in utter shock, pulling it off quite well. Dianna was amazed by her mother's acting skills.

"W-what?" she asked breathlessly.

Aedan growled in frustration, wondering how they couldn't possibly know of their daughter's whereabouts. He would have thought Olyvia would have seen them at least one last time before she left…if she did leave. There was still that possibility that she didn't, that she was still hiding somewhere, here in this house, and these people were just incredibly good liars.

"I said oi! Stupid head!" Rosemary shouted again.

Aedan whirled around to glare at her, his hand clenching around the hilt of his sword, ignoring the twinge of pain in his arm as he did so.

"Rosemary! What are you doing? Are you crazy?" Dianna asked in a hushed tone.

"Search the house!" Aedan shouted, deciding not to bother wasting his energy on the little girl, "Find whatever you can that can give me the whereabouts of Olyvia Theirin!"

His men then began to spread out through the rooms and Dianna saw Rosemary run off as some of the soldiers began to go up the stairs. Dianna prayed that Rosemary wouldn't get herself hurt, or worse, killed, by trying something stupid against the men. The soldiers then began to rifle through everything, upturning the furniture and throwing aside their rugs. Dianna glanced over to her mother, and saw the panicked look on her face. She knew what she was thinking. The two letters from Olyvia. If they found those, they would all be dead. Or at least tortured first before being killed. With those letters, Aedan would be able to easily find her and Alistair, and they too would be killed.

After kneeling on the floor for what seemed like an eternity, they heard the sound of another horse approaching, and Dianna looked up in shock to find the Teyrn burst through the door.

"I said not to harm them!" he roared, seeing Aedan's blade drawn, and grabbed him by his shoulder and pulled him away, "What do you think you are doing?"

"These are Olyvia's relatives," Aedan seethed, "I am merely searching for her whereabouts, or any clues that may lead to her."

"Must you be so forceful?" Fergus asked.

"I will never get the answers I need by being lenient!" Aedan yelled at his brother, "You just don't understand that concept!"

"Aedan, there is no need to use fear and intimidation to get what you want!" Fergus rebutted, "That is not what Father taught us! Did you pay no heed to him?"

Aedan's face contorted in fury, "It's your majesty!" and then he suddenly lashed out with his blade, cutting through Fergus's armor and slicing into his side. Fergus crumpled to the ground clutching at his wound, and Dianna could only stare in horror over what just happened. He just…attacked his own brother! How could…how could somebody do that?

"Since you want to be so much like father, there you are," Aedan said, kicking Fergus in his injured side, making him cry out in pain, "Just like father."

Hearing movement from upstairs, Dianna and her mother looked up to see the soldiers returning to the first floor, dragging Rosemary down by her hair and threw her down onto the ground beside them.

"We found nothing your majesty," the head guard informed him.

"Nothing!?" Aedan shrieked.

"N-nothing…your majesty," the guard replied, the fear noticeable in his voice.

Aedan roared in anger and then slapped Dianna across the face, hitting her so hard she fell over onto the floor.

"Hey! Don't touch her!" Rosemary shouted.

"Shush Rosemary," Dianna whispered.

"Do not think this is over," Aedan snarled, "I will find her, and once I do, I'm going to come after you all next."

He turned on his heel and went to leave, kicking his brother one last time on his way out. All his soldiers quickly followed after him, and Dianna peered through the window to see Aedan give a horse with an empty saddle a slap on the rear, making it run off before turning and heading back up the road. Once the sound of hooves died away, Dianna scrambled over to the Teyrn and rolled him over onto his back so she could apply pressure to the wound. Her stomach churned as the warm, sticky blood oozed over her hand. She never handled human blood well, but she couldn't just let him bleed out.

"Mom, what do I do?" she asked in panic.

"Rosemary, go find some bandages, and quickly," Brenda instructed her daughter.

"Where am I going to find some bandages?" she asked.

"Take an old tunic or something and use the fabric," Brenda said, "Anything will do now, but hurry!"

Rosemary nodded, and took off back upstairs. Brenda then got to her feet and headed into the kitchen, to see if she had any sort of herb that would help with keeping the injury clean and sterile.

"Hey…hey, keep your eyes open!" Dianna shouted at the Teyrn as his eyes began to flutter shut, "Don't you dare shut your eyes! You have to stay awake. Don't you dare die on us!"

It appeared that he understood her, trying to keep his eyes open, but he was struggling. Dianna began to fret when a few minutes had passed and no one had yet returned.

"Mom! Hurry! He's fading quickly!" Dianna shouted.  
"I'm trying, I'm trying!" her mother replied.

Tears were streaming down Dianna's face she was panicking so much, her heart feeling like it would beat its way right out of her chest. Movement caught her eye, and she looked down to see the Teyrn was raising an arm. Dianna froze as he placed a blood covered hand on her face, lightly caressing her cheek.

"Ori…ana," he breathed.

And then his arm dropped as it went slack, his eyes partially closing.

"MOM!"

* * *

Dianna paced around the room, looking over at the still body of the Teyrn they placed on their couch every so often, worrying about his condition. They managed to slow the bleeding by bandaging the wound, but there was no telling what would happen to him now. It certainly wouldn't look good if he died in their home, and they were unsure of what _his highness_ was doing or spreading about the reason his brother was not returning to the castle.

"I can't believe he actually did that," Rosemary said, also watching the Teyrn, "His own brother."

"I was a little shocked at first too, but now that I think about it, I'm not so much," Dianna said, "Mom is definitely going to tell Livy about this. Speaking of Livy, how did they not find the letters? They were just sitting on Mom's dresser."

A sly smile spread across Rosemary's lips as she reached down into her dress and pulled the letters out, "I hid them before they got there."

Dianna ran over to her sister and hugged her, giving her a big kiss on the top of her head, "You are a genius! Thank goodness you were upstairs."

"I wasn't about to let Mr. Stupid Head find Livy," Rosemary said, "She's depending on us to keep her a secret now."

"But because of this, we probably won't be able to send any letters off to her," Dianna said, "We'll have to start using the different names she told us to use in our letters, and try to get a way to send it without him rifling through it. I wouldn't be surprised if he's already getting ready to search through the mail when it comes and goes."

"He would have to be smart to do that, and why do you think I call him stupid head?"

"Better safe than sorry," Dianna said.

"If we do send her a letter, with the different names and such, Livy _will_ know something happened," Rosemary said, "It doesn't matter the name we put on the letter anyway right? As long as the address is correct."

"But I'd be a little hesitant to put her real address on it," Dianna said.

"We don't need to worry about that either," Brenda said, "Olyvia has all the mail sent to Alistair's workplace. She was also thinking ahead."

"Our family is full of geniuses!" Rosemary exclaimed, a huge grin on her face.

Dianna sighed in relief, "Good, then we will be able to tell her about what happened here, and warn her because that was too close."

Brenda nodded in agreement. She was hoping that there would not be another close encounter like that again.

Rosemary looked back over to the Teyrn, "So what are we going to do about him?"

Dianna turned as well, her brow furrowing in worry, "The best thing to do would be take him back to the castle, even with _his majesty_ there. They would be able to treat his Lordship better than we can. Problem is, we just have to wait for Dad because none of us can carry him, and his horse is long gone."

Rosemary pursed her lips, "I…don't think that is a very good idea _because_ stupid head is there. He might try killing him for sure there!"

"He might die here because we don't know what we're doing!" Dianna rebutted.

"He won't die," Brenda said, "If we try to carry him all the way to the castle, we'll most likely reopen the wounds and then he'd bleed out. It would be better if we let him rest here to regain his strength, but we should also send a message to the castle of the Teyrn's whereabouts, and then they'll probably send help or someone to get him, with less chance of hurting him."

"That makes sense," Dianna muttered, "But who is going to send the message."

Brenda looked at Rosemary and her eyes went wide.

"Me? But stupid head hates me! He might try to hurt me if I get close to the castle!" Rosemary panicked.

"All you have to do is give a note to the guard at the front gate, tell him it is urgent and the king is not to know because it was his majesty that put the Teyrn in his current situation," Dianna said, "If he believes you, he will do so, if not…well, I'm afraid we'd get another visit from his highness."

Rosemary shuddered, "A-alright…I will…try."

"I'll write down the message you will give them," Brenda said, heading into one of the back rooms.

She returned a few minutes later and handed the note to Rosemary who then took off out the door and headed up the road to the castle. Brenda then went back to cleaning up the mess Aedan left behind in other areas of the house, while Dianna stayed in the main room, cleaning up there as well as keeping an eye on the Teyrn. She really hoped that he would pull through.


	3. Chapter 3

**For those of you who have read chapter 2 of Allegiance, you might be able to guess what the letter was about from this chapter. (This is why the two stories go hand in hand).**

**imurhuckleberry: I want to kill him too, but I have to wait a little. Poor Fergus indeed.**

**csorciere: A demon of Vengeance! Totally! If only he were possessed, but no it's just his own warped mind.**

**CHAPTER THREE**

By the time Rosemary returned home from delivering the note, their father was home, and was hearing the accounts of that afternoon's events from their mom. Rosemary said the guards had received the note and that now it was in their hands. There had been no sign of waking from the Teyrn, and Allen and Brenda both decided to at least move the Teyrn into the guest room, where he could recover more comfortably. Moving very carefully, they took him upstairs and set him down on the bed that Dianna just finished putting back together.

"Now Dianna, if you could keep an eye on him, your father and I will continue to clean up downstairs," Brenda said to her daughter, "If you need anything, or if anything happens, just call for us."

"What about me? What can I do?" Rosemary asked.

"You are going to help clean," Brenda replied.

Rosemary frowned, wishing she hadn't asked. Heading back downstairs with her parents, she went to help with the cleanup, and Dianna picked up one of the tipped over chairs, set it down by the bed, and sat. Grabbing a book, she began to read, occasionally glancing up to see if there was any change in the Teyrn.

After about a half hour, Dianna heard groaning sounds, and the sound of blankets shifting. Looking up over her book she saw that the Teyrn was starting to move around. Snapping her book shut, she set it down and scooted her chair a little closer.

"My Lord? Are you awake?" she asked.

He blinked his eyes open, and Dianna's heart leapt into her throat when he turned to look at her, "Oriana?"

Dianna bit her lower lip, wondering who this Oriana was who he thought she may be.

"Um…no, it's Dianna," she replied.

He lifted a hand to his face, rubbing his eyes for a few seconds before dropping his hand back down at his side.

"So I'm not dead then," the Teyrn muttered.

"N-no…," Dianna replied, "Um…how are you feeling? Are you in any pain? We sent word to the castle, but we haven't seen anyone come to help yet."

"I'm…sorry," he said quietly.

Dianna's brows furrowed, "If you are apologizing for your brother, don't. You need to stop apologizing for him."

"No…no, I'm apologizing…for what I've done," the Teyrn said, "I had no idea…that this Olyvia he's been looking for…was your sister when I mentioned your family's name earlier today."

Dianna didn't want to know how her family's name was brought up, and to Aedan.

"Had I known…I wouldn't have said anything," he went on, "I know what he will do to find her, and I'm sorry your family had to suffer."

"We…we'll be fine," Dianna said, "He only made a mess of the house."

Dianna's throat grew tight from her heart ramming itself further up into her throat as the Teyrn lifted a hand and lightly touched her bruised face where Aedan had hit her.

"But he hurt you."

Dianna blushed, and gently moved his hand away, "I-I'll be fine, my Lord. It…it hardly hurts."

"Dianna," he said barely above a whisper, making her stomach do a little flip, "You can call me Fergus, instead of addressing me by my title."

"I-I-I think I w-would feel more comfortable addressing you by your title though," Dianna stammered, her heart beginning to pound wildly, which was an odd feeling with it shoved up into ones throat.

"I would like it…if you would call me by my name," he said.

Dianna was sure her face would ignite any second now from how madly she was blushing. She could only think of a few reasons of why he would want her to call him by his name, and a few of them she was surprised to find she hoped were the reason. Was she really starting to like this guy? She couldn't though! He was the Teyrn for crying out loud and she really was just a simple, common person. Sure, her family may have money now, but they acted like a middle-class, or even lower-class, family. There was a big difference in how she acted, and how the other rich folk acted.

"I…I guess I can…try then…if it is really what you want," Dianna replied quietly.

He nodded, and then cringed as he groaned in pain, his hand going to his side.

"Is there anything I can get you?" she asked.

"Some water…might be nice," he replied.

Dianna nodded, got to her feet, and quickly headed downstairs to get him a glass of water. As she entered the kitchen, her mother noticed her since she was still cleaning in there.

"Is he awake?"

Dianna nodded in response, "Yes. I'm just getting him some water. Has no one arrived from the castle?"

Her mother shook her head, "I'm afraid not. This doesn't look good, if someone hasn't come yet. There is no telling what the king is doing up there preventing anyone from coming to help."

Dianna whimpered, "I hope not. I doubt we'll be able to do much for him. He needs someone who knows what they're doing to help him."

"Well, we'll do our best and hope someone eventually comes," Brenda said.

Dianna nodded in agreement, and filled the glass she grabbed with water before heading back upstairs. Pushing open the door, she was glad to see he was still conscious. She probably would have freaked out a little if he had fallen asleep again, thinking he died or something.

"I-I brought the water," Dianna stammered.

Going over to the bed, she placed the glass on the nightstand before gently helping Fergus into a sitting position and then handed him the glass. He drank nearly all of it in one go, and Dianna took it back from him when he was done, and then helped him lay back down.

"Thank you," Fergus said.

"You're welcome," Dianna replied, "Is there ah…anything else you want or need?"

Fergus shook his head, "No…but thank you."

"It's the least I could do," Dianna said, "Don't take this the wrong way, but…your brother is a horrible, horrible man! I can't believe…what he did to you…his brother."

"My brother wouldn't have done that," Fergus said quietly, turning his head so he was staring at the opposite wall instead of looking at her, "Gotten upset with me, most likely, but that…no. My brother died the same night my parents did, being replaced with this…monster."

Dianna gazed sympathetically down at Fergus. He really did love his brother, or at least the brother he knew.

"He is too far gone…to ever come back," Fergus said, "What he did today just proved that. There is not one sliver of the man he used to be left inside him."

Before Dianna could register what she was doing, or why, she found her hands wrapping around one of Fergus's, giving it a consoling squeeze. He turned and looked down at her hands briefly before looking up into her eyes, causing her heart to sputter sporadically. Dianna blushed, and looked down at her hands, wondering why she did that, but now it was a little late to remove them. A message had already been sent, but what message she was sending, she wasn't even sure herself. The message he received though…well, it all depended on how he interpreted the motion.

"I'm…sorry," Dianna said quietly, looking back up into his eyes, "I hope…things will start getting better."

Fergus moved his other hand to lay on top of hers, and her heart began to race at his touch, and the current that coursed through her body.

"It already is," he said quietly.

Dianna blushed furiously, and averted her gaze again, looking towards the door. She wasn't exactly sure what that meant, though a part of her hoped it was a certain reason that kept popping up into her mind.

"Dianna…," Fergus whispered.

She raised her gaze to meet his, their eyes locking as they met. Fergus opened his mouth to say something else when he was interrupted by the door opening. Dianna instinctively pulled her hands away, setting them back down in her lap, and turned toward the door. Two men came in, none that she recognized, one older and one younger, followed by her mother.

"They came from the castle," Brenda said, "They're here to help."

Dianna breathed a sigh of relief and got to her feet to get out of the men's way, "Thank goodness. Thank you for coming."

"We would do anything for our Teyrn Cousland," the elder of the two men said, "It is him we are loyal to, who we trust."

"Has Aedan done anything at the castle?" Fergus asked as the younger man pulled down the blanket and began undressing his wound.

"He has said nothing about what happened to you, only that he doubted you would be returning to the castle, and is beginning to take over it himself," the elder replied.

Dianna scoffed, "So the castle in Denerim isn't enough? Nothing will ever please the guy, will it?"

Fergus began to push himself up, "I have to return to the castle."

"Father, I'm going to need your help," the younger man said, and the elder quickly moved over to the bed, and helped coax Fergus into lying back down, that he needed to wait until he was fully recovered to return to the castle, or else he wouldn't be in any shape to go against Aedan.

Dianna moved to the doorway, "I'll just get out of your way to let you work. Just get him better."

The elder nodded, and Dianna slipped out of the room, shutting the door and began to follow her mother down the hallway.

"If you wouldn't mind Dianna, after they leave, if his Lordship has to stay, which I am willing to bet he will, if you could continue to look after him," Brenda said.

Dianna sighed, "Why me? Why can't you or Dad? Either of you would do a better job, why do I—oh, no…no Mom! I can see what you're trying to do."

"What? I'm just trying to help him," Brenda replied.

"You're trying to…to…match us together!" Dianna accused, "Mom, he's the Teyrn and—,"

"And we are a wealthy family, our status is basically nobility now," Brenda said, "We may not… exactly have the class and know-how the others do, but it's not like it is forbidden."

Dianna groaned, "I can't believe this. Mom, again, he is the _Teyrn_. You match me with him, and I would end up Teyrna. I don't want that! I'm not even suited for it!"

Brenda sighed heavily, "I just want to see my daughter married."

"You got to see one get married already, why do you need to see me married?" Dianna asked quietly.

"You are twenty-four Dianna," Brenda replied, "You should be trying to start your own life with someone, not continuing to live with us."

Dianna groaned, and rubbed her temples, already getting a headache from this, "Whatever. I'll look after the Teyrn, if needed, but only then and not because I hope to gain his attention in _that_ way."

Even though there was a part of her in the back of her mind that wasn't arguing against it, in fact actually hoping that it would work out in that way.

* * *

The two men left later in the evening, after the family had eaten supper, and they informed the family that he would be better within the next day or two and they would leave him here for the night and would return tomorrow to take him back to the castle when he was better recovered. Once they left with that news, Brenda sent Dianna up with a plate of food for the Teyrn on a tray, and Dianna couldn't help but have a sour countenance on her face as she trudged up the stairs. She really hated it when her mother got into a matchmaking mood. It had only happened a few times before, but she hated it.

Lightly knocking on the door, she heard a "come in", so she pushed it open and stepped inside. Entering the room, she was glad to see that Fergus had more color in his face, was sitting up, and was looking much more alert. She also noticed that he was wearing a shirt now.

"You're certainly looking better," Dianna said, "I uh…I brought you some food…if-if you're hungry that is."

"I would love some food," Fergus replied.

Dianna set down the tray on his lap, and then poured water from the pitcher she brought up as well into his glass.

"I apologize if you prefer ale, but we only have water in this household," Dianna said.

"That is perfectly fine," Fergus said, "Thank you very much for all your hospitality."

"Again, the least we could do," Dianna said, "So um…I-I'll just let you eat your meal in peace."

She took a few steps backwards to head back to the door when Fergus spoke up.

"Please stay…I would like to have some company…if that is not too much to ask," Fergus said.

"V-very well," Dianna said, and took a seat in the chair that was still beside the bed, "I shall stay then."

Fergus began to eat the meal, saying a quick compliment about how delicious it was after the first few bites before continuing to eat. After a few minutes of silence, Dianna's curiosity finally got the better of her.

"So how exactly are you doing so well now?" Dianna asked, "Earlier you were…near death."

Fergus swallowed his bite of food before replying, "You won't tell anyone, will you?"

"Is it a secret?" Dianna asked.

"If you want to know, you have to promise me not to tell anyone else what I tell you," Fergus said.

"I promise," Dianna said.

Fergus took in a deep breath, "Bartholomew's son Elliot is a mage. He used his magic to heal me, otherwise I would be stuck here recovering for quite a while longer. I don't wish to be a burden upon you or your family so that was the best option."

"A mage?" Dianna asked, her eyes growing wide in shock, "I thought they all are taken to the… the Circle…or whatever it's called, when they're young."

"Which is why I don't want you to say anything," Fergus said, "It would kill Bartholomew to lose his son, and I would also lose valuable help, which has come in handy quite often since I've been reinstated as Teyrn, such as now. So please…don't say anything that will get Elliot taken away. He is a good kid, and would never harm a soul."

"I won't, I understand," Dianna said.

"I am glad to hear that," Fergus said, "Though I have…only just met you…I feel like I can trust you, Dianna."

"You can trust me more than your brother, that is for sure," Dianna said.

A small smile tugged at Fergus's lips, "Yes, as sad as it may be, it is true."

Dianna wrung her hands together as an awkward silence filled the room. She'd rather be talking if he wished her to be there, otherwise she just might slip out of the room, making up some excuse to do so. It didn't take her long to come up with something to ask though.

"So when will you be returning to the castle?"

"I think I shall return on the morrow," Fergus replied, "I can't let my brother have control over the castle for too long."

"But…won't he suspect something with you being completely healed?" Dianna asked, "I may be giving him too much credit in his perception skills, but just in case."

The look on Fergus's face showed he hadn't thought of that.

"It will be a risk I have to take," Fergus replied, "I fear for my staff, and my home, with his mind as warped as it is."

"He's king though, he could kill you if he wanted and no one would say anything against him."

"That's not entirely true," Fergus said, "I know of a handful of nobles who would, which would in turn inevitably start another civil war, though…I think one may start anyway. So perhaps Aedan will think that far ahead and reconsider killing me right on sight."

"Again, too much credit on his part."

Fergus smiled, "I like that you speak your mind, no matter who it is about."

A blush spread across Dianna's cheeks, "I…I probably shouldn't though…it's not my place. Not to mention the repercussions I could receive from doing so."

"I find it somewhat refreshing," Fergus said, "Really makes me believe in your honesty."

"Well…thank you…I guess," Dianna replied quietly.

Fergus finished up his dinner, and Dianna gathered up the tray, heading back downstairs after saying a goodbye to the Teyrn. She was finally able to relax being out of the room. Fergus really made her nervous, mainly because of the fact that he was the Teyrn, but also partially because she was starting…to sort of like him. Honestly though, nothing could ever be between them. Though their family were considered nobles, she still felt like a nobody, and him being a Teyrn, couldn't be with anyone that was a nobody. Of course, she doubted that would stop her mom from trying to match them together.

* * *

The following morning, Dianna brought Fergus his breakfast, and after he finished got himself ready to return to the castle once she left, not bothering to wait for Bartholomew and his son to come get him. Though he was still feeling sore and not at his full potential, he knew he had to return home and face his brother. He wasn't so confident in how he'd fare at this point, going against his brother, but he knew he'd have to at least try.

Heading downstairs, he stopped at the entryway, looking into the kitchen where the whole family was, stopping with what they were doing to watch him go. They all looked concerned for him, and Fergus appreciated it, and hoped that they were praying to the Maker for his safety.

"I would like to thank you all personally for your kindness and aid," Fergus said with a nod of his head to them, "I hope that will be enough for now before I can fully repay you."

"Oh, there is no need for that, my Lord," Dianna said, "We just wanted to do the right thing."

Her mother shot her a look, and Dianna looked at her in confusion before it hit her. She wanted to try to get her and Fergus together as his repayment. Giving her mother the evil eye, she shook her head. No, absolutely not. She would _not_ be arranged with someone. If she were to ever marry, it would be for love, not…_repayment_ for an act of kindness.

"Be careful," Rosemary said, then added when Dianna elbowed her in the arm, "My Lord."

He nodded again, and then placing his helmet over his head, headed out the door. Dianna and Rosemary moved to the kitchen window to see him get onto his horse, which their father had found yesterday, which Dianna informed him that it was there for him to take back to the castle. With a kick of his heels into the horse's belly, he goaded it into a canter and was gone.

"Oh I hope he'll be alright," Dianna fretted, wringing the rag she had in her hands into a tight rope.

"Does someone have a cruuuuush?" Rosemary taunted, a smirk on her face.

Dianna whipped the rag around, hitting Rosemary on the top of her head. Her cheeks flushed red as she began to protest, "No! He's the Teyrn, and a nice one at that, I don't want his brother replacing him! Alright! That is all I meant by it!"

"Ow! Fine, whatever, geez," Rosemary complained, throwing her arms over her head to protect herself from further attacks.

Turning on her heel, Dianna stomped back over to the sink where she was washing the dishes. Her sister was right though, though she would never, _ever_ admit it to her or out loud, she did sort of like Fergus and didn't want to see him get hurt again. Especially by someone like Aedan. Now that he was returning to the castle though, she doubted she'd ever see him again.

* * *

Arriving at the castle, Fergus could tell the guards were uneasy, but they didn't try stopping him on his approach and that was all he needed. Bringing his horse to a stop at the castle's front doors, he dismounted and strode towards them. The guards scurried about, looking unsure on whether to open the doors or if they should remain still, but they took too long to decide Fergus pushed them open and entered the main hall.

"Where is my brother?" Fergus asked the guards in the room.

"H-h-he is in the study…my Lord."

He didn't waste any time and headed for the study straightaway. Guards and servants alike moved out of his way, scurrying out of sight to hide, knowing what was bound to happen. Slamming open the door to the study, Fergus saw his brother whirl around from where he stood at the front of the desk, his hand grabbing the hilt of his sword.

"Ah, so he yet lives," Aedan said darkly, "No matter what happens, I won't be rid of you will I?"

"You have gone too far, Aedan," Fergus growled, "Trying to kill me. What good would that have done you?"

"It would have gotten a nuisance out of my way!" Aedan shouted, "And must I remind you every time, it's _your majesty_."

"So we are brothers no more?" Fergus asked, "You are just going to ignore the life we shared, spent together, _here_ in Highever? You're just going to forget that?"

"I did just stick a blade into your gut the other day," Aedan said rather nonchalantly, "So I think that answers that question."

Fergus clenched his jaw in anger, pain and sadness welling inside his chest. He had lost his entire family, he had no one left now.

"And just what do you plan to do now, _your majesty_?" Fergus drawled.

"Highever Castle will be mine," Aedan said, drawing his sword, "And _you_ will just be another obstacle overcome."

"Of what path?" Fergus asked, "What is it you seek so desperately, you are willing to kill to get it?"

"Vengeance!" Aedan roared, "I've told you that! I will kill Alistair Theirin, and his wench that ruined my life, and then _no one_ can take what I've worked so hard to get!"

"So this is just a mad path of you trying to keep the throne?" Fergus asked incredulously, "Aedan, you have gone mad with power, this needs to stop."

"It's _your majesty!_" Aedan roared, lunging at Fergus with his sword.

Fergus was quick to dodge though, and then drew his sword, bringing it up in time to block Aedan's next strike. Though Aedan was a Grey Warden, and skilled with the blade, his injury greatly hindered his ability now, so Fergus had the upper hand. Throwing Aedan back with a shove of his blade, Aedan stumbled back into the desk, before gaining his footing and attacking Fergus again. The two danced about the room, the clang of their metal swords reverberating through the castle walls, Fergus waited until Aedan was in front of the open doorway before kicking him in the gut, sending him reeling backwards and out into the hall.

"You are no match for me," Fergus said as he strode out of the room, "So go now, before this gets out of hand."

"Never!" Aedan snarled as he threw himself at his brother once more, "I am the Grey Warden! I am the greater fighter! I am King! _You_ stand no chance against _me!_"

The din of their battle was heard throughout the castle, and as they fought, Fergus could hear the approach of armored men. His stomach dropped, thinking it would be Aedan's men coming to aid their king, in which Fergus knew he would perish if that were the case. Going against the king, let alone battling him, was considered treason. Chancing a sideways glance in the direction he heard the sounds, his suspicions were confirmed and his stomach felt like it dropped to the floor. Aedan's men filled the hall, and there was no way Fergus could fight them all, not in his condition. He wasn't completely healed from his previous injury. Pushing Aedan away once more, he took a few steps back.

"I think you should start begging for mercy," Aedan said smugly, looking at his guards.

Fergus would never dishonor his family's name by begging, and to someone who had no honor himself, he would rather die with his dignity. Taking a deep breath, he was prepared for what was to come, when he heard more footsteps, this time behind him. Looking over his shoulder, he was surprised to find all his men at arms, all his guards, even some of the male servants, standing behind him, armed with their weapons or whatever the servants could find that looked like it could cause serious damage. With all of them, they easily outnumbered Aedan and his men.

"Go, Aedan," Fergus said, looking back to his brother, "I will give you ten minutes to get out of here, before a battle breaks out. You are no longer welcome here, and no longer considered my king. Congratulations Aedan, you just started another civil war."

Aedan sheathed his sword, glowering at his brother, "It's your fault, defying your king."

"Maybe I wouldn't have, if he had only acted like one" Fergus rebutted.

Aedan didn't say anything, instead turned on his heel and pushed his way through his guard, heading for the main entrance. It was only after he and his men cleared the hallway that Fergus allowed himself to relax. Sheathing his sword, he turned to the men behind him.

"Thank you for standing beside me," Fergus said to them, "I know how much you fear Aedan."

"We will remain loyal to you, Teyrn Cousland," the head guard said, "Always."

* * *

After Fergus had left, Dianna and Rosemary went up to their room to work on more clean up. Aedan's guard really had left a huge mess in the rooms, and there was still a lot left to put back. Their father had left for work, so it was just the girls home, their mother cleaning up her room also. They were up there for hardly an hour when the sound of terrified screams from outside caught their attention. Since their room was at the back of the house, the two ran across to another room and looked out the window to see Aedan's guards in the streets.

"This doesn't look good," Dianna muttered.

Rosemary moved to another window, looking down at their front yard, "Definitely not good. It's Aedan!"

Dianna ran over to the window to see just what Aedan was doing, to find him walking towards their door. A few seconds after he disappeared from their sight, they heard the door slamming open.

"Go to Mom's room, hide those letters and hide yourselves," Dianna said, "Go! Go!"

Rosemary didn't need to be told twice and took off like a shot out the door. Dianna was right behind her, but in order to give Rosemary and her mom the time to hide, she had to do the stupid thing and run down to confront Aedan.

"Now what do you want?" Dianna asked, stopping midway down the stairs since Aedan was already at the bottom.

"Since I won't be back here in a while, I figured I might as well leave nothing for Olyvia to come back to, just in case," Aedan said, "And hurt my brother while I'm at it by getting rid of his little fascination."

Dianna looked at him in confusion. What did that mean? She started backing away from him as he advanced up the stairs, but he moved faster than she anticipated and snatched her by her arm.

"Now do tell me the rest of your family is here as well."

Dianna glared up at him, keeping her lips sealed. She wasn't going to say anything. Squeezing tighter on her arm, he began to drag her up the stairs.

"Since you won't talk, I can only hope they are," Aedan said, "I don't want anyone to be forgotten."

Dragging her into the nearest room, which happened to be her bedroom, and she started to panic, thinking she knew what he was going to do. He threw her hard against the dresser, her head cracking loudly against it. She went to reach for her throbbing injury when Aedan roughly grabbed her hands with one of his, pulling out a bit of rope from the pouch on his hip with the other. Pulling her to the foot of her bed, the tied her hands to the post.

"What are you doing?" Dianna asked as he walked back to the door.

He stopped in the doorway to turn back to her, "Getting rid of the thorns in my side."

Dianna's eyes widened in horror as one of his men came in with a lit torch. Aedan took it, and Dianna almost expected him to toss it into the room, but instead he walked away. She instantly began struggling against her binds, trying to get loose, but the rope was too tight and only chaffed at her wrists. After a few minutes, the smell of smoke assaulted her nose. So he was burning down the house.

She began shouting for her mom and Rosemary, but they weren't coming so Dianna could only assume they had been found and bound to something as well. Once the smell of smoke became stronger, Dianna could hear Rosemary's terrified screams. Squirming and pulling, Dianna tried even harder to free herself from her binds, but it just wasn't happening. Squeezing her eyes shut, the tears there spilled over, sliding down her cheeks. This was going to be it, wasn't it?

* * *

Fergus had only just started restoring the order at the castle from the chaos Aedan left behind, when a few of his guard approached him, informing him that a house in the noble district was on fire. Fergus had a gut feeling it was Aedan, doing it out of spite, but Fergus was worried about whose house Aedan may have picked. He could have just chosen randomly out of anger, or a certain one to really get to him. Ordering his men to go and try to contain the fire so it wouldn't spread, Fergus went to the stables and got his horse, again, and headed for the city. He saw the smoke from the castle gates, and as he headed towards it, his stomach grew heavier and heavier, knowing _exactly_ which house it was. Skidding to a stop in front of the Hamilton's house, he found it completely engulfed in flame, neighbors and passersby standing across the street watching on in shock.

His men were already there, standing along the perimeter of the house to make sure falling embers didn't start any more fires. Fergus knew there was nothing anyone could do now to stop the fire, the house would just have to burn down. He wasn't about to just stand there and watch though, no, he knew Dianna and her family were inside. Dismounting his horse, he ran towards the house, ignoring the cries of his men, asking him to stop. The door was easily broken down, and Fergus moved quickly to the stairs, since the entire bottom floor was completely engulfed in flames that no one would have been able to survive if they were down there.

The stairs started to crumble slightly beneath his weight, but he moved quickly enough to the top floor, where there was more smoke than flame, but it was quickly spreading down the halls and into the other rooms. Heading to the left first, he entered a few rooms and found nothing until the end of the hall. Rosemary and her mother were bound to the heavy oak desk, which looked to have been drug towards the center of the room, where the two were now lying motionless on the floor. The whole room was burning around them, having apparently dragged themselves away from the walls to avoid burning to death. Drawing his sword, Fergus cut the rope that bound them to the desk, sheathed his sword once more, and slung one over each shoulder before leaving the room as quickly as he could.

Though his arms were full, he wanted to find Dianna before leaving the house. He doubted he would be able to make another trip back, and he wasn't going to leave without her. Passing the rooms he already checked, he entered the next one, feeling extremely relieved to find Dianna in there. She too was bound, as well as unconscious. Setting the mother and Rosemary down onto the floor, Fergus cut Dianna loose as well, before heading back to the stairway to see how blocked his path may be. It would be impossible to reach the door with the three girls. His only option now, was to jump. He quickly checked the last rooms for the father before returning to the room where the girls were, and broke through the wall where the fire had weakened it. He then gathered the girls up in his arms once again, grateful that Rosemary was so small that he would be able to carry her and Dianna in one arm. Reaching the hole, he jumped through, landing hard on the ground, pain shooting through his legs. He was pretty sure he broke at least one. _But_, at least he had a mage back at the castle who would be able to easily fix that.

"My Lord!" one out of the handful of guards that came rushing from their perimeter shouted out to him, "My Lord are you alright?"

"I will need assistance getting back to the castle," Fergus replied, "But I want these three brought to the castle to be seen by the physician before me. I can wait."

"As you wish my Lord," another guard said.

Three guards stepped forward and picked up the girls, and headed back around to the street where their horses were so they could return to the castle. Two others helped Fergus to his feet, and over to his horse where they helped him up so he could get back easier that way. He watched as the other three guards took Dianna and her family back to the castle as he got settled on the saddle. He prayed to the Maker they would be alright, Dianna especially.

* * *

Reaching the castle, Fergus was carried in by a few of his guards to the infirmary. He of course refused to be seen to by the healers until they finished with the Hamilton girls. He was glad to hear they were okay, just suffering from effects of breathing in the smoke, the mother and youngest suffering the worst since they had been breathing it in longer. Once he received that news, he allowed the healers to take a look at him. As he suspected, he had broken one leg, while the other was just badly sprained. Elliot was easily able to patch him up. He was taken back to his chambers to rest afterward while the other three were to stay in the infirmary.

Fergus made sure at least two guards stayed at the Hamilton household to wait for the return of Mr. Hamilton so they may escort him to the castle to see his family. It was almost the evening before Mr. Hamilton was brought up to the castle, having not heard that it was his home that burned down so he didn't return from work until his normal time. Fergus went to see him, apologize for what happened, since he was certain it was his brother who did it. Mr. Hamilton expressed his gratitude to Fergus for saving his family, which Fergus replied it was the least he could do for all that his brother had put them through.

The girls still hadn't woken up by the time he retired for the evening so Fergus couldn't help but worry a little. He was hoping to talk to one of them soon, to verify his suspicions of his brother being the cause behind the act of arson. That was just the small worry on his mind at the moment though. The big issue he was concerned about, was the civil war that was bound to start, and soon. He would have to get help to be able to stand against Aedan, with all the power he had, or else he didn't stand a chance.

* * *

As Dianna first started coming to, she knew she wasn't dead from the burning pain in her chest. It hurt to breathe, her lungs feeling like they were stretched too far. Blinking her eyes open, she looked around the room she was in, not recognizing it at all. She saw her mother and sister lying on cots to her right, both still asleep. At least, she hoped they were asleep. Her father was sitting in a chair at the far end of the room, also asleep.

Pushing herself up into a sitting position, she swung her legs off the bed and moved her head around to stretch her neck. She ran her fingers over the raw skin on her wrists, from having been tied to her bed. How did she get out of there? Someone must have come into the house and gotten her and her family out so the question was, who? Was it her dad? Or someone else?

"You should still be resting," someone said from behind her.

Turning around, Dianna recognized the young man as the mage Elliot who had come to her house to help the Teyrn.

"What happened?" Dianna rasped, her voice very dry, "Am I…am I at the castle?"

Elliot nodded, "I do not know the details of what happened, all I know is you and your family were brought in here yesterday by a few of the guards. Your father arrived later in the evening."

Looking back over to her mother and sister, she asked, "Are they alright?"

"They are," Elliot replied, "They breathed in much more smoke than you had, but they'll be just fine."

Dianna sighed in relief. She was glad to hear they were alright. Then she started to become angry. Angry at Aedan for being such a bastard. If she could, she'd hunt him down and kill him herself. Wait a second, if they were at the castle, did that mean…Aedan was there too?

"Where is his majesty?" Dianna asked, "Is he still here?"

Elliot shook his head, "The Teyrn ran him out of the castle. I'm afraid another civil war will start because of it though."

Dianna gawked at Elliot, hearing this news. Fergus ran Aedan out of the castle? He actually got him to _leave_? They were so dead then, when Aedan returned, because there was no doubt in her mind that he'd gather his army in Denerim, and march right back to Highever.

"You really should lay back down miss," Elliot said, seeing the blood drain from her face, "I shall inform my father that you are up, and he will see to you."

Dianna nodded numbly before swinging her legs back up onto the cot, and laid down. Bartholomew came to her a few minutes later, while Elliot left the room, perhaps to run an errand. The elderly man was pleased to see she was recovering just fine, would be in a bit of pain for a little while, but she would heal quickly. He walked over to Rosemary's bed beside her, to check on her condition, when Dianna heard the doors open again. Looking past Bartholomew, her stomach began to do somersaults as she saw the Teyrn walking towards her.


	4. Chapter 4

**I am SOOOOOOOOOO SORRY for not updating sooner! I was working on other projects and studying for my finals and wasn't able to finish this chapter before the semester ended and no longer have a reliable source for internet to upload chapters. For those of you reading **_**Allegiance**_**, the next chapter for that one may take a little longer, because I have little to write for a certain time frame that this story occurs and I don't want to give away any plot events from this story in the other so…there might be one more chapter on **_**Allegiance**_** before I wait to finish this story to finish that one.**

**csorciere: You just made the plot of my story work. THANK YOU! Ugh, I was worried how I'd work in how much time passes between this story and Allegiance. (This one much less so, Allegiance will span over a greater amount of time) So thank you, thank you, thank you! I needed that reminder that Aedan was really just the Queen's consort. And yes, Aedan only tied Dianna up. He did have to get out of the city before Fergus chased him down with an army.**

**Isala Uthenera: Alistair and Olyvia won't be jumping at the opportunity to go back to Ferelden with the civil war going on. Alistair doesn't want the throne, so he's happy staying in Antiva and out of the mess, but yes, having an heir would strengthen his claim to the throne.**

**imurhuckleberry: She'd take much more than his head.**

**Guest: Yeah, they probably should learn how to fight.**

**Pollyanna24: Oh, Loghain will **_**really**_** have it in for Aedan later on, but yes, Fergus should have just run him through, but **_**he**_** at least is still human. He just can't do that to his brother. (Not now at least). As for Eamon, he will get his comeuppance.**

**AeroSpyder: Thanks!**

**LilysSong: Thank you! And Aedan is a super jerk indeed.**

**CHAPTER FOUR**

Dianna quickly turned her head to stare up at the ceiling again so Fergus wouldn't catch her staring, since she figured he just came to speak to Bartholomew, but he passed the elderly man and stopped at her bedside.

"I heard you had awoken," Fergus said.

Dianna nodded stiffly, still not used to the fact that someone so high up in the hierarchy would actually speak to her.

"I was hoping to ask you what happened," Fergus said, "To see whether my suspicions as to who caused the fire were correct."

Dianna nodded again, and pushed herself back up into a sitting position so it wasn't so awkward, talking to the Teyrn who was standing over her.

"His majesty came—," Dianna began, interrupted for a moment when Fergus sighed despondently, running a hand over his face, "He grabbed me, drug me to my bedroom and tied me to my bed. One of his men handed him a torch, but he left the room. I'm assuming he decided to burn the downstairs first so we had plenty of time to think about our petty lives before we died. As for my sister and mother, I do not know what happened with them. They were hiding when Aedan first arrived."

"They were bound to a desk in one of the rooms," Fergus explained to her, and seeing the confused look on Dianna's face went on to explain, "It was I who went in and brought you all out. I had a feeling it was Aedan, and I felt that would help somewhat to repay your family for the help and kindness you have shown me."

"Somewhat?" Dianna asked incredulously, "My Lord, you saved our lives, I think we're even."

"Not from all my brother has taken from you," Fergus said, "I feel like I still owe you something."

Dianna sighed. This guy was just determined to make up for his brother's wrongdoings.

"My Lord, that is not your place," Dianna said, "His majesty is responsible for his own misbehavior."

"I am his older brother though, I still feel responsible for his actions."

"Well you shouldn't," Dianna said, "Though he has yet to act it, he _looks_ like an adult."

The corner of Fergus's mouth twitched, "Still not afraid to speak one's mind I see."

Dianna blushed, "Sorry, again I speak out of place. All I really should be saying is thank you, thank you for saving my life, as well as my mother's and sister's. I really don't believe you are indebted to us at all. In fact, we are indebt to you."

"Hardly," Fergus scoffed.

Dianna opened her mouth to further argue her point when she was interrupted by coughing. Looking over, she saw Rosemary was the one coughing, her whole body tense as the coughs rattled her small frame.

"Is she alright?" Dianna asked Bartholomew worriedly.

"She is just fine child," Bartholomew replied, "Her body is just trying to rid itself of the toxin."

"Toxin!" Dianna exclaimed.

Bartholomew nodded, "Yes. Smoke is a toxin. It does not belong in the body so the body does what needs to be done to heal itself."

"Urrgh, why does it feel like a bomb has been set off in my lungs?" Rosemary rasped.

Dianna swung her legs over the side of the cot and moved to her sister's side, "Hey there Rosemary, you feeling alright?"

"I think that's a bit of a stupid question, don't you think?" Rosemary asked, her voice cracking.

"Yeah…sorry," Dianna muttered, "So what happened?"

"One of his royal pompousness's guards tied Mom and I to her desk when they found us hiding," Rosemary wheezed, "We couldn't get loose so we drug the desk away from the wall when the room caught fire. We passed out not long afterward."

"Rosemary, we have company, you probably shouldn't use your nicknames for the king," Dianna whispered to her sister.

"Huh?" Rosemary asked, blinking her eyes to clear her vision to see the Teyrn standing not five feet from her bed, "Oh…uh…well I'm not sorry. I hate that guy."

Dianna sighed, slapping the palm of her hand to her forehead, while Fergus only laughed.

"I see you both aren't afraid to speak your minds."

"Must be a family thing," Dianna muttered, then said to her sister, "Please try not to talk."

Rosemary rolled her eyes before shutting them, going back to resting. Dianna went to go back to her cot so her sister could get her rest, stumbling over her feet as she first got going. Her face flushed red when Fergus reached out and grabbed her by her arm to help steady her, walking her the rest of the way to her bed.

"Thank you," Dianna muttered, before adding, "My Lord."

She was still getting used to saying that, even though she certainly had more practice than the rest of her family, being the one who seemed to talk with him the most.

"You should get your rest Dianna," Fergus said, and she couldn't help the way her heart sputtered hearing him say her name, "You've been through a lot this past day."

"I-I shall," Dianna stammered, laying back down on the bed and throwing the blanket over her, "Thank you for your concern, my Lord."

He nodded, and turned to Bartholomew, speaking quietly into the man's ear before then leaving the room. Dianna couldn't find the ability to rest though, she was far too awake to try to rest so she just stared up at the stone ceiling. She couldn't help but wonder, where would she and her family go once they were done being cared for here?

* * *

Dianna was glad to hear from her father that he found the cats wandering around the burned house when he had arrived and they were currently being held in the guest room he was offered so they wouldn't get lost again. They must have been able to get out of the house when it first caught fire.

After resting for a day, Dianna felt well enough to get up and walk around. She needed to stretch her legs anyway, for having laid down for so long. Of course, she wasn't sure if it was alright for her to just wander around the castle, but after heading into the hall and no guards telling her to leave, she guessed it was alright. She just roamed about the halls until she came across a room which had the door open. Peeking through the doorway, she saw it was a library. Here she could definitely spend days in, just reading. Seeing a few other people inside, she went ahead and made her way in, heading over to the far corner of the room away from the others to peruse through the books. She had spent a good amount of time scanning over the books, and had pulled one out that had looked interesting and was reading through the first few pages when she became aware of someone watching her. Looking up from the book, her face turned bright red seeing Fergus standing about five paces behind her.

"I hope I'm not intruding," Dianna quickly said.

Fergus shook his head, "No, not at all. You are more than welcome to spend time in here."

Dianna smiled nervously, and after a few seconds of debating whether to say something, turned to look back down at the book. It was better if she didn't say anything.

"I actually…was meaning to speak with you," Fergus said after a few moments of silence had passed, seeing Dianna wasn't going to say anything.

She looked back up from her book, her countenance one of worry, "A-a-about?"

"Your stay here at the castle," Fergus replied, and Dianna was expecting him to go on to say that it was time for her and her family to go now that the healers had looked over them, "I was about to go find your father and speak with him, but since I saw you, I thought I could inform you first. You and your family are welcome to stay until another house is built or purchased or other lodgings become available to you."

"O-oh…" Dianna said quietly, surprised by his offer, "Y-y-you are too kind my Lord, but we don't want to be a burden."

"It's no burden at all," Fergus said, "And I'm not about to send you back to live on the streets. Besides…I feel obligated to some degree to compensate for what you've lost due to my brother."

"Again, you don't have to pick up after your brother."

"He left my city in a mess, and he won't come back to make it right," Fergus rebutted, "If he does return, which I expect he will in a fit of rage, he'll pick up where he left off with destroying my city. So I'm just doing my duty as Teyrn and putting my city back into order. That is all."

"I believe that, but…it seems like you're giving my family the special treatment," Dianna said, "Would you really do this for any of your other subjects?"

"I…well I—," the question seemed to have caught Fergus off guard, and he cut off his reply as his face turned pink.

Silence fell between them once more, and something popped into Dianna's head that she figured now would be her only chance to really ask.

"Who is Oriana?"

Fergus snapped his head up, pain flashing across his face for a brief moment, "Why…why do you ask that?"

"Because you called me by that name by accident a few times," Dianna replied.

Fergus's face fell, "I have…haven't I? Oriana…she was my wife."

Dianna's eyes grew wide in shock. She had no idea he had been married. Thinking really hard about it now, she recalled Olyvia mentioning something about Fergus having a wife and…something else, during one of her rants about how much she hated Howe and what he did to the Couslands. What was the other thing though?

"We had been married for nearly eight years when…she was killed last year," Fergus continued, "Along with my six year old son Oren."

Right, he had a son, that was the other thing she couldn't quite remember. Her heart fell hearing just how young he was. Who could kill a child?

"Is there a reason though you've mistaken her name for mine? Or was it just a slip of the tongue?"

"You remind me of her," Fergus replied, stepping closer and making Dianna's heart leap into her throat, "You look…" he paused as he lifted a hand and caressed Dianna's face, making her heart fall over dead in her throat and her face to turn a deep shade of crimson. She was wondering how she was still alive after that, "you look so much like her."

Dianna's heart began sputtering, telling her she was alive, but then as his words sunk in, so did her heart, right into her stomach. If he had any feelings for her, as remote as she believed they could be, they weren't for her, but rather his feelings for his wife. Still, she couldn't help but feel all fuzzy and tingly from the way he looked at her, and the electrifying feeling his fingers left on her skin. He must have realized just what he was doing because he snapped his hand back, almost reeling backwards on his heels from where he had been leaning toward her.

"I apologize," Fergus said, his voice sounding dry, "I don't mean to be so…forward."

Dianna couldn't come up with any reply, starting out a few times with just stutters of words before she gave up, and shrunk back slightly, her face a burning inferno now. She felt embarrassed for having these…silly feelings toward the Teyrn, she should have known better than to think he would ever like her back, even remotely. And then to hear he only showed some interest because she reminded him of his deceased wife, it hurt.

"Dianna…I—."

She didn't want to hear anything more and get hurt even more so she snapped the book shut, dropped it down onto the bookshelf ledge, and ran out the door. Though she didn't know where anywhere other than the infirmary was in the castle, she didn't care, she ran through the halls until her feet grew tired, finding herself in a room with religious items as decorations. So there was a Chantry in the castle. Sitting down on one of the pews, Dianna dropped her head into her arms. She didn't want to be here anymore. Here she had absolutely no one to talk to, confide in, not counting her family because it just wasn't the same. She felt so alone, and she hated it.

* * *

After moping in the Chantry for a few hours, Dianna returned to the infirmary only to have a serving girl, who looked to be around her own age, inform her that her family had been escorted to guest rooms and she was to take her to one as well. So it was to her guest room she went, where she found Nelly hiding under the bed, in full freak out mode from being in a new, foreign place. The rest of her family was in nearby rooms, and Dianna decided to go speak with her parents to find out what their plan was. Her father didn't want to take advantage of Fergus's hospitality, and decided he'd start looking for a new home to purchase on the morrow. Her mother on the other hand was just fine with staying.

"Mom, please just…stop with the matchmaking attempts," Dianna said when her mother gave her opinion.

Allen looked over to his wife in confusion, "Matchmaking?"

"If it happens, it happens," Brenda said, "I'm not going to force anything."

Dianna groaned, "Mom, it won't happen, I can assure you of that."

"What makes you say that?"

"He's still getting over his wife's death," Dianna replied, "And I apparently look like her so…he wouldn't be able to see past that. Plus I think it causes him pain to look at me."

"Oh…," Brenda muttered, "How do you know this?"

"He told me."

"I see…"

"Wait a second, you were trying to match Dianna up with the _Teyrn_?" Allen asked incredulously.

* * *

The moment Fergus was able to get around on his feet again, he had gone straight to his study and started writing letters to send to some of the nobles who had long been allies with his parents, who he was certain would remain loyal and aid him. The first on his list was Arl Eamon. Even after his flop at the Landsmeet, he still remained a strong voice amongst the nobles, and many looked up to him. If anyone could convince the nobles to fight against Aedan, it was Eamon. With his influence, there would actually be a chance to remove Aedan from the throne with another Landsmeet. He still expected another civil war to break out, and Highever was going to be the first battlefield, that he was sure of. He needed to keep his people safe, another reason he was calling for allies.

He had finished writing more letters the second day after Aedan's departure, and was leaving the study, passing through the castle's library on his way out when he stopped, something, or rather someone, having caught his eye. It was Dianna, and he was glad to see she was feeling good enough to be out and about. He started talking with her when she had suddenly asked about Oriana, bringing on a flood of memories of his deceased wife. Yes, he missed her, and yes, Dianna reminded him of her, but he knew Dianna was her own person, having seen just a little side of her, he was intrigued, fascinated by her and wanted to get to know her better. He had tried speaking with her, but she suddenly ran off. He couldn't help but wonder what he had done, or said wrong.

He tried seeing her again so he could ask if he had done something to upset her, but as the days passed, he began to think she was avoiding him. He hadn't seen her at all, except for at meals since the family was invited to dine with him, so he couldn't help but think she was purposefully staying away him.

Not letting it bother him too much, he continued to focus on the task at hand and doing his duty as Teyrn. He couldn't let his work get too far behind. Working alone though, he was already starting to drown under his duties and the paperwork. Rendon Howe left a lot for him to clean up after.

Ten days had passed since he sent out the first of his letters, and still received no reply from any. He was beginning to worry that his judgment was wrong, and that he would be fighting a losing battle, that it would be pointless to even try to go against Aedan. Just as he was about to lose hope and resign himself to his fate, he was alerted by a messenger that Arl Eamon had arrived to the city and would be at the castle within minutes. He hurried to the front gates to personally greet the Arl as he arrived.

The Arl had only a handful of guards with him, his usual escort when he left his Arling, but Fergus couldn't expect him to bring a whole army with him already, not with it being so soon after the Blight.

"I am relieved to see you, Arl Eamon," Fergus greeted.

"I wouldn't be relieved just yet," Eamon replied, "I may not be able to help you with this… delicate situation."

"Let us speak in the study," Fergus said, motioning for the Arl to follow him.

As they passed through the library upon reaching it, Fergus noticed Dianna curled up in the far corner of the room, reading a book, lifting it higher to cover her face as he walked in. Though she may have tried to hide herself, it was too late, he had noticed her. As much as he wanted to just step over and speak to her momentarily, his business with Eamon was far more important.

"So I'm guessing this spat you had with your brother was more than the typical sibling rivalry," Eamon said once the door shut behind him.

"He tried killing me Eamon," Fergus said, "And he would have succeeded had others not intervened. It wasn't like he was punishing me for a crime either, I had done nothing wrong, not in the way of the laws at least. I had only gotten in his way."

"Apparently a crime punishable by death," Eamon said, "This is not the first case heard about his majesty removing someone in his way. You're just the first to survive. And someone with power."

"He isn't even fulfilling his royal duties," Fergus continued, "Were he, he wouldn't be away from Denerim, weeks on end. Has he even spent more than a week at the castle?"

Eamon shrugged, and Fergus continued with his rant, "The country is falling into ruin. I've seen it here, and I know we're better off because my city managed to stay out of the Blight's path. The land ravaged by the darkspawn though, I doubt its seeing any care."

"It isn't," Eamon replied, "Redcliffe is just starting to rebuild, and my brother's Bann is still in ruins. His majesty simply does not care about the state of the country. The only thing he cares about is the death of that woman he's been chasing after for months. Which I have to say myself, doesn't really sound like a bad thing to me."

Fergus looked at Eamon incredulously, "What…did you just say?"

"If it weren't for her, Alistair would possibly be on the throne instead of your tyrant of a brother," Eamon replied bitterly, "Because of her commoner blood, she wasn't suited to take on a title such as queen, and because of that, not only was Alistair against taking the throne, the nobles didn't want to cast their vote to make him king because he was determined to make her his wife. So you can understand why I'm upset."

"You upset?" Fergus asked skeptically, "May I remind you Aedan stuck a blade into my gut two weeks ago? I have lost the last member of my family to bloodlust, so do not complain to me about how _upset_ you are about Alistair not being king. Yes that is part of our problem, but not the main one. The main issue is that Aedan isn't capable of being the king this country needs and letting it fall into ruin."

"The only solution is to replace him though," Eamon said, "You know that."

Fergus nodded solemnly, knowing what would most likely have to take place before that because Aedan would never allow another Landsmeet to convene.

"So who do you expect to take the throne?" Eamon asked.

Fergus sighed, "I thought…since you're so popular amongst the nobility, that perhaps…"

"I am not as popular as you once thought," Eamon said, "And I still believe we should have a Theirin on the throne."

"Firstly, how do you expect to find him when Aedan, with all his resources, can't?" Fergus asked, "And secondly, why would he? If he's with Olyvia?"

"How do you know her name?" Eamon asked.

"My brother wouldn't stop talking about her, remember?"

"Point taken," Eamon said, "Then we'll just have to remove his reasons to refuse."

Fergus paled, "You're not saying what I think you're saying are you?"

"I am," Eamon said, "And I confess, I tried before with this Olyvia girl, so Alistair would agree to take the throne at the Landsmeet."

Fergus couldn't believe what he was hearing, that Arl Eamon would stoop so low to try putting someone on the throne. There was only one reason that someone would do that. There had to be something Eamon expected to gain having Alistair on the throne.

Fergus was about to say something, appalled that Eamon indulged in such behavior, when the study door flew open, and a livid Dianna stormed through, almost throwing herself at Eamon.

"You tried killing my sister?" she shrieked at him, "For what purpose? What had she ever done to you?"

"Who do you think you are to speak to me in such a manner?" Eamon spat back.

"Olyvia's sister, that's who," Dianna rebutted, "I don't care your status, or mine. You tried hurting someone I loved, you should pay for that."

"There isn't anything you can do about that," Eamon sneered, "Because of your status."

Dianna let out a feral shriek as she threw herself at Eamon, her fingers tensed into claws, looking ready to tear Eamon to shreds. Fergus had seen this coming though and intercepted her, firmly grabbing her around the waist.

"Dianna, don't do this, we have enough problems as it is," Fergus said.

"But he had tried killing my sister, and just suggested to attempt it again!" Dianna shouted, fighting against Fergus's grip, "I won't let him do it! She's my sister!"

"I won't either! Dianna, stop and just listen to me," Fergus ordered, "I won't have anyone killed needlessly. Now return to your room, I have to continue discussing plans with the Arl."

Dianna stopped fighting, and Fergus loosened his grip, only to have Dianna shove him away in anger, glaring at him bitterly with tears in her eyes, before turning on her heel and storming out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

"You do intend to do more than just reprimand her for her behavior towards me?" Eamon said questioningly.

"What you suggested was heinous, and I would never agree to it," Fergus said, "And Dianna has gone through enough already."

Eamon looked at Fergus incredulously, "I would expect a Teyrn to be harsher to servants who overstep their boundaries."

"Dianna isn't a servant," Fergus said, a look of confusion on his face, "She and her family are nobles here in the city."

Eamon turned pale, his eyes widening in shock, "What?"

* * *

Dianna paced back and forth in her room, steaming over what she had just heard and what happened in Fergus's study. She couldn't believe Fergus had that man here. What was there to stop him from trying to kill Olyvia again, or convincing Fergus to do so? And for such stupid reasons. When she saw them enter the study, she had a tugging feeling in her gut to get up and listen, but now she was regretting eavesdropping.

She had been in her room pacing for about ten minutes when she heard her door open then swing shut again. Looking up, her stomach did a little flip seeing that it was Fergus, but she didn't let that little jolt show on her face, instead glared at him.

"You don't keep good company do you?" she asked bitterly.

"If you are referring to Arl Eamon, you don't know what you're talking about," Fergus said, "Yes he may have made some bad choices in the past, but he is still a good man."

"A good man wouldn't have my sister killed to put someone on the throne," Dianna nearly shouted, "What would he have to gain anyway? It's not like he'd be king? Or is there something I'm missing?"

"Dianna, neither of us knows the whole story. Perhaps he—."

"Why did he try killing my sister Fergus? Why?" Dianna asked, tears springing to her eyes.

Fergus said nothing, instead stood there, looking a little surprised over something. Dianna waited a few moments to see if he would say anything before speaking.

"Then maybe perhaps I should go ask this Arl Eamon," Dianna said as she walked toward the door.

As she went to pass by Fergus, he grabbed her by her arm, spinning her around to face him. Dianna was expecting him to start berating her, put her back into her place, but that was far from what actually happened. She had hardly any time to register she was facing him before his mouth hungrily claimed hers. Her eyes flew wide open in shock, while her whole body became weak from the shot of lightning down her spine, her legs buckling under her. Despite how intense and passionate the kiss was, his lips still felt so warm and soft against hers.

The kiss lasted only a few seconds before Dianna slammed her hands against Fergus's chest, pushing the two of them apart. Had she thought that he had kissed due to feelings he had for her, she may not have reacted in such a way. She was pretty sure he had only done so because of his feelings for his deceased wife.

"Dianna wait," Fergus called to her as she stumbled towards the door.

"Don't talk to me," Dianna said through her tears, "Just stay away from me."

Shoving the door open, Dianna ran down the hall, letting her feet take her elsewhere while her mind was still reeling over what just happened. She ignored the stares of servants and guards as she made her way through the halls, and soon she found herself outside, and on an unfamiliar path. But she didn't care, she kept running, pushing back the tears that stung her eyes and threatened to spill over. She began to slow down as her feet hit sand, more so out of not wanting to twist an ankle than anything else, but due to having weak pathetic ankles, she twisted one anyway. Slowing to a walk, she limped over to a cluster of rocks near the hillside and sat down on one. Reaching down with a hand, she nursed her ankle as she cursed under her breath.

"It's just not fair," Dianna said to herself, "How the Teyrn is treating me. I'm not…I'm not there for him to think of me as a replacement for his wife. I have feelings too, and he is toying with them. It's just not fair."

After sitting on the rock became uncomfortable, she sat down on the sand, drawing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, and stared out at the grey ocean water crashing onto the beach. She just needed to be alone for a while, so she was just going to stay here.

* * *

Since Dianna said she wanted to be alone, Fergus was going to respect her wishes so he didn't go after her immediately. Once it grew later in the day and saw that she didn't come to supper with everyone else, he began to worry and started asking where she might be, if anyone had seen her. One of the female servants informed him that she had seen her head down the path leading towards the beach, and hadn't seen her return. So Fergus headed to the stables, saddled his horse, and trotted down that very path. It was going to get dark soon, and he worried that something happened to her to keep her from returning. Any sane person would have returned long before nightfall to avoid wandering in the darkness.

Once he hit the beach, he could see footprints in the sand, so he followed them to a cluster of rocks near the hillside, where he found Dianna curled up in a ball, staring out at the ocean. She snapped her head up when she heard his horse, her face crumpling into a frown when she recognized it was him.

"There you are," he said, dismounting and walking over to her, who got to her feet as he approached, "Your family and I were starting to worry something had happened."

"I'm fine," Dianna snapped, limping around him as she went to leave.

"What happened Dianna, are you alright?" Fergus asked, seeing her limping.

"I said I was fine!" Dianna shouted, trying to limp away faster.

Only she ended up hurting herself again trying to hurry away, tripping over a rock she didn't see, twisted her ankle again, and down she went. Fergus rushed over to her side and grabbed her arm to help her up, only to have her rip it away from him as she pushed herself back up, all her weight on her right leg since the other hurt too much now.

"Dianna, let me help you."

"I don't need your help! Nor do I want it," Dianna snapped, "The only reason you're doing this is because I look like Oriana. I'm not Oriana so stop thinking of me as her!"

Fergus paused for a moment, looking at Dianna with a confused, and hurt expression, "What makes you think you know the reasoning behind my actions?"

"Because it makes sense!" Dianna retorted, "I will not tolerate being treated as a replacement so if you'll excuse me, I'm trying to avoid you."

"Why?"

"Because I just don't want to be around you!" Dianna shouted back.

"That's not an answer."

"That's as good of one you're going to get," Dianna said bitterly. She wasn't about to tell him that the real reason she was avoiding him was because it hurt too much to be around him because she liked him and he would go on and on about Oriana around her. It was just too much for her to handle, having never felt like this before.

She went to leave again, ignoring the jolt of pain in her leg every time she stepped down onto her left foot, only to find herself being scooped up bridal style by Fergus.

"You are far too stubborn for your own good," Fergus said with a frustrated sigh.

"Let me go! I said I don't want you helping me!" Dianna argued, beating her fists against his shoulder, "Put me down!"

"Stop being so infuriating woman!" Fergus shouted in exasperation, "I can say in complete honesty that you are _nothing_ like Oriana. She was never as stubborn and bullheaded as you. So for the love of the Maker and all that is holy, stop struggling and let me help you!"

She didn't listen though, and continued to struggle to get loose until Fergus finally got back on the horse with her in his lap since it wouldn't be fun falling off. Tucking her head down, she let her hair fall over her face to hide as they rode back to the castle. She was just so upset with him, she wanted nothing to do with him. Though as she let his words run through her head, there was something he said that made her think a little. He said she was nothing like Oriana. So did that mean…everything he did that she believed Oriana was the reasoning behind…was just her imagination? No, that sounded highly unlikely, no one ever liked her for _her_. No one ever bothered giving her a second glance, why would that change now?

Reaching the castle, Fergus first went to the stables, where Dianna once again tried to get away from Fergus when he tried dealing with the animal, but he snatched her up again, handing the horse off to a stable hand to let them take care of it. Dianna pouted the entire way to the infirmary, where she was handed off to Elliot for him to take care of her, setting her down onto a cot.

"So just how badly did she hurt herself?" Fergus asked.

"Why do you care? Go away!" Dianna snapped.

Elliot looked from her to the Teyrn in shock. She had a lot of guts to speak to him like that.

"I care because you are here under my supervision," Fergus retorted.

"I don't need supervision! I'm an adult, I can take care of myself!"

"Oh yes, just like you proved today?"

"I would have been fine, if you had just left me alone."

"Right, this is entirely _my_ fault."

"Just go away and leave me alone! You've caused me enough pain already!"

"Dianna—."

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Dianna shouted, flopping down face first onto the cot.

Elliot's eyes darted between the too, looking very nervous about this little exchange and unsure of what he should be doing. After Dianna yelled at him, Fergus huffed, "Fine!"

Turning on his heel, he stormed out of the infirmary. Elliot continued to stand there, looking like a frightened deer, jumping slightly when his father came walking over, chuckling under his breath.

"Ah, young love," Bartholomew said.

"That…didn't look like any sort of fondness to me."

Bartholomew patted his son on the back, "You have much yet to learn."

* * *

After having her ankle checked, which was bruised and swollen because she had sprained it rather than simply twisting it, and Elliot healed her up she was allowed to return to her bedroom. Lying on her bed, she tried to sleep, but she just couldn't. Dozens of questions were racketing around in her head; her brain was too busy with them to relax. Not even having Nelly on the bed with her was helping. After tossing and turning for over an hour, she got up and went over to the writing desk in the room. She knew what she needed to do. She needed to write her sister. She was married now, perhaps she could offer some insight as to what she should do. So pulling out a piece of parchment, opening the inkwell, and grabbing the quill, she began to write. It felt a little odd, to be spilling out these feelings to her sister, but it also felt right. Odd because she was the younger sister, right because she was her closest sister, the one who knew her best.

Finishing the letter, she folded it up and placed it in an envelope, sealing it with wax. She would give this to her mother tomorrow to go with the letter she wrote so they could both be sent off at the same time. Dianna really hoped this letter would reach her in a timely matter, she wasn't sure how much longer of this emotional torment she could take.

* * *

Fergus didn't bother her the next day, which Dianna appreciated, she really needed the time alone, not only to cool down, but to really let her think over her feelings and whether she was a good enough judge of Fergus's. It was true she didn't know exactly his thoughts, but she had a gut feeling her first guess was the right one, that he kept thinking of her as Oriana in some attempt to keep his wife's memory alive.

The following day her father told them he had found a new place for them, and that he was making the final preparations to purchase it. They would have their own home again by the end of the week. Once they moved in, the chances of seeing the Teyrn again were slim to nothing. Again, Fergus didn't speak to her at all that day, only her father, wishing them the best in case he didn't have the chance to say goodbye later.

Dianna didn't exactly detest her stay at the castle entirely. She liked going to the library to read since there was such a vast collection of books, and in the few days they had been there already made herself a corner that she sat in and read. She did her best to ignore Fergus as he went to and fro between his study and other places in the castle, but it was Arl Eamon she ignored even more. She had a great dislike for the man already, and wished he would leave. Of course, there was probably some important reason for him to be here still.

It was on the fourth day after Arl Eamon's arrival that Dianna and Fergus ran into each other again. Literally. She was heading to the library in the morning, reading a book she had taken the previous night to stay up in her room reading in an attempt to finish it but ended up stopping two chapters shy of the end, when she went around a corner and ran straight into Fergus, clipping her head on his armor as her book went flying from her hands.

"Ow," she muttered, rubbing the bump that was already forming on her head.

"I am sorry Dianna," Fergus said, reaching down and grabbing the book for her, "I was in a rush, I wasn't watching where I was going. I apologize if I hurt you."

"I'm fine," Dianna said tersely, taking the book back with a quick snap of her wrist.

Fergus sighed, "I really shouldn't have expected any other answer. Now if you'll excuse me."

He partially stepped around her as he also reached out and grabbed her by her shoulders, scooting her aside, and sending a jolt through Dianna's body. It was so infuriating, the reaction her body had to him while she was still so upset with him.

"What's the emergency?" Dianna found herself asking.

"A messenger from Denerim," Fergus replied as he quickly strode down the hall, "And I'm assuming it's a warning of my brother's impending arrival."

Dianna's heart lurched up into her throat. Aedan could be coming back already? Not just by himself though, but with an army. What were the chances of them surviving an attack when they had little in the way of a militia here? Everyone was recovering from the final battle against the Blight, and word was that Denerim recovered rather quickly, in the way of numbers, while everyone else was struggling.

Opening the book back to where she was, she found her spot and resumed reading as she continued on her way, entering the library a minute or so later and sitting down in her spot in the corner. The minutes passed, and she was just a few pages from the end when Fergus whipped through the library and straight into his study, Arl Eamon following closely behind. Her curiosity was piqued though, and was tempted to go over and eavesdrop again. Shaking her head, she pushed that thought aside. Last time she did that, it didn't turn out well. But the nagging voice in her head wasn't leaving her alone so up she got, and walked over to the study door, leaning against the wall beside it to listen.

"I'm just as surprised as you are," she heard Eamon saying, "Perhaps her majesty saw what was becoming of her husband and that's why she called for the Landsmeet. That or her father suggested it. He tends to do that."

"At least it shows Aedan can't do whatever he may please," Fergus said, "I am, however, wary to leave Highever for weeks on end. There is no telling how long the Landsmeet will go on. Knowing Aedan, he will try to stall for as long as he can."

"You have no option in the matter, you have to go," Eamon said, "The charges equally apply to you."

Dianna's brow furrowed in confusion. Charges? What charges? Fergus hadn't done anything wrong…well…except to defy the king, but he was insane! What else were you to do with an insane person in charge?

"Queen Anora wishes to speak to me about the events that happened here rather than charge me with anything, but she's not the only one I'll have to deal with there," Fergus said, "And you are right…I have no choice in the matter."

"So when do you plan on traveling to Denerim?"

"Probably in two days," Fergus replied, "Should be enough time for me to get things settled here and prepare for the journey."

"Then I shall make the preparations for my own departure on the morrow," Eamon said, "I expect we shall see each other at the Landsmeet."

"May the Maker watch over you on your travels Arl Eamon."

"May He watch over us all in these troubling times," Eamon replied.

Since that sounded like the end of their conversation and Dianna didn't want to get caught eavesdropping, she pushed herself away from the wall and scurried back to her chair in the corner. Seconds later the study door opened, and Eamon left. The door remained open, but Fergus didn't come out and didn't by the time she finished her book. Putting the book away, she got back up and quietly walked over to the door and peeked through to find Fergus sitting at his desk, head in his hands. He looked overwhelmed, and Dianna couldn't blame him. There was so much happening now, all thanks to Aedan, and that had to weigh heavily on his shoulders. Stepping away from the doorway, she went ahead and left the library. She wasn't in the mood to read anymore.

* * *

The castle was bustling with activity the following day, in preparation for the Teyrn's departure to Denerim. The Hamilton family were also rather busy themselves, since they were planning on leaving within the next few days into their new home. Not like they had much to take with them, except for the few items of clothing they had gone out to buy, but they did take a few hours to go to the site of their first home to see if there was anything salvageable, which there wasn't. They were hoping there were, but the fire had destroyed everything. Dianna and Rosemary were heading back to the castle, having rummaged around longer than their parents, when they happened upon Fergus speaking with his guard outside the castle. It looked like the soldiers were doing some training on the outer castle grounds so they had the proper room to do so. They were all in the way of each other for passing.

"Excuse me…my Lord," Dianna muttered, grabbing Rosemary by the arm and went to walk around them.

"Dianna, if I might have a moment," Fergus said, before motioning to his guard to continue on with what they were doing, and they marched off.

Dianna stopped abruptly, and groaned, giving Rosemary a pleading look to help her come up with an excuse, any excuse, to avoid talking to him. But Rosemary wouldn't do it. She was rather sick and tired of Dianna avoiding the Teyrn when she knew very well she liked him, so Rosemary believed she needed to talk to him, get it out, and get it over with.

"I can go back on my own," Rosemary said, pulling her arm away from her sister's grip, "See you at dinner."

"Rosemary no!" Dianna squeaked, giving her a threatening look and motioning for her to get her butt back there. Rosemary merely waved goodbye before turning her back and scurrying away. Dianna was going to kill her next she saw her.

"Dianna," Fergus began, and she reluctantly turned around to face him, to find him _right_ there in front of her, making her jump a little and step back, "I was hoping for the opportunity to speak with you before I left on the morrow. I intend to get an early start. As I understand it, you and your family will be taking residence in your new home within the next few days."

"Yes…that's correct."

"I will be gone for…weeks at least, and I didn't want to leave without saying goodbye," Fergus began, "You and your family have done…a great kindness towards me, and I will forever be grateful for your help…and I will say, I will also miss your confidence to speak your mind. It was very refreshing to hear, even with us…butting heads."

"That's an understatement," Dianna muttered.

"At any rate, I just…," Fergus paused, and placed a hand on Dianna's face, gently caressing with his fingers, sending that jolt through her body, "I just wanted to say goodbye. To you at least."

Dianna struggled keeping a stoic expression on her face. She was torn between glaring at him and gazing up in endearment. She _really_ liked him, but he was a _huge_ pain in her butt right now. And an ache in her heart.

"Yes well…goodbye," Dianna replied.

"With what waits for me in Denerim," Fergus said quietly, letting his hand drop to his side, "I fear that I may not be returning."


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey, it didn't take me a month to get this chapter written! Woohoo!**

**Pollyanna24: Thank you for reminding me about the kitties. Stress relief will take place…after a while. I think Dianna will be more of a stress inducer than reliever for a while. (I think you'll understand what I mean by the end of this chapter).**

**csorciere: Ferelden definitely is an easier place to live than anywhere else in Thedas. As for the Landsmeet, it's fear of the king vs doing what's right for the nobles.**

**imurhuckleberry: Yes, lots of tension there. No room for them yet. Fergus is a good kid…well…okay Dianna is the good kid.**

**CHAPTER FIVE**

Dianna couldn't sleep. She had managed to fall asleep for a few hours, but now in the early hours of the dawn, she just couldn't fall back asleep no matter how much she tossed and turned. What Fergus said to her earlier that day kept repeating over and over in her mind, how he feared he may not return from Denerim. She certainly hoped he would, not only because he was a good Teyrn and ruled justly over the people, but because she didn't want to bear the thought of him dying, or put into prison. As much as part of her didn't want to see him just because he upset her so much, there was another part of her that hoped to see him again, after all of this.

Sounds began to float through her bedroom window, and since she knew she wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon, she went ahead and got up to investigate. Down below she could see the Teyrn and his guard preparing to leave, already mounted on their horses and heading toward the outer castle gates. He certainly wasn't kidding about getting an early start, the sun was hardly about to rise, only a slight glow from it beyond the horizon.

Dianna continued to watch as Fergus spoke to his men, too quietly for her to hear, but she could discern that he was speaking. She then saw him cast his eyes up toward the castle, and she guessed to have one more look at it before leaving it behind him, but she could almost feel his eyes on her. She couldn't help but blush and hunker down a little on the window sill, even though it was most likely pointless. She doubted he'd be able to see her with her dark room behind her, but still, she couldn't help but feel like he had been either looking _at_ her or _for_ her.

Fergus turned back around, his horse whinnying as its head was swung around, and with a kick to the horse's sides, he headed off toward the gates, his company of guard following closely behind. Dianna watched until he had passed through the gates, and even after they were closed, she still stared out the window, her heart growing heavy. She really hoped he would be alright.

* * *

Moving into their new home really didn't take long. Each family member had their own pack of belongings and that was just about it. It were the cats that were a handful, and once they were set down, spent the next few hours slowly moving around the house with their noses glued to the floor, sniffing the new scents. Dianna went into her new room and spent the few minutes it took to refold the few sets of clothing she had and place them in her dresser, or hanging up the one other dress she had, before laying down on her bed, staring up at the wooden ceiling and counting the knots. It was a nice house, a little larger than their previous one, but Dianna didn't really care much about that. She just wanted something to do, she was just so utterly bored.

"Hey Dia! You've got to come check out my room!" Rosemary exclaimed, poking her head through her bedroom doorway, "It's so cool!"

"Not interested," Dianna muttered.

Rosemary grumbled under her breath something about Dianna being no fun and trudged away. Dianna continued to lay on the bed, listening to the chirping of the birds and groan of the trees as they swayed in the wind outside her open bedroom window. Rolling over onto her stomach, she lifted her head up and propped it on her fist, and looked out the window where the sun was shining through, looking ever so inviting. Being the middle of spring, the weather was warm and pleasant, and very tempting to someone who was grousing in their dark room. So lazily rolling to the side of the bed, she swung her legs off and got up onto her feet, making the short trek over to the window, and just about draped herself over the sill as she looked around outside and let the sunlight warm her face. She glanced down to her neighbor's yard, to find a young woman, probably around her own age, sprawled out on the grass, soaking up the sunlight. She had the same hazel brown hair as her, and her dress was hiked up perhaps a bit much, but that was all Dianna could tell with her limited vision. Her glasses hadn't ended up transporting to Ferelden with them, so she was out of luck in the sight department. Not like the glasses would fit in around here anyway.

She didn't bother staring, since it was rude and it wasn't like the girl was doing anything interesting, so she went back to looking around at the rest of the surroundings. She couldn't help but frown slightly seeing she had a really good view of the castle. She didn't want any reminders of Fergus.

"MARGARET!"

Dianna nearly jumped into the ceiling she was so startled by the sudden bellowing next door, and looking over, saw the girl who had been lying on the ground jolt up onto her feet and go running into the house. From the way the voice sounded, Dianna was guessing it was her mother, and wasn't very happy with her daughter. Well, at least now Dianna knew her name, maybe if she saw her around she'd be more comfortable approaching her and saying hi.

After spending a few minutes in the window sill, Dianna decided to do something better with her time. Grabbing a book, she plopped down in the sunlight on the floor next to her cat, who jumped slightly from having something large drop down next to her. She calmed Nelly down by running a hand over her head and down her back a few times before immersing herself into the book. She couldn't help but miss the comfy chair she sat in, in the castle library, but shook her head to get rid of those thoughts. If she was going to get over Fergus, she should start by trying to forget about him and anything associated with him.

Hours passed as she read, subconsciously scooting along the floor as the sun followed its path through the sky. She was pulled from the book's world rather abruptly from Rosemary sticking her head in the door, and then shouted as loud as she could for her. Terror shot up Dianna's spine as she tensed from the sudden sound, before shooting a glare at her sister.

"You still don't understand the concept of inside voice do you?" Dianna asked, closing her book around her finger, "Now what do you want?"

"Mom wants us downstairs," Rosemary replied, this time at a much more reasonable volume, "Something about company."

Shutting her book completely, Dianna got up, smoothing out her dress before following her sister downstairs. Standing just inside their doorway, was the Margaret girl, and an older woman who Dianna guessed to be her mother. Getting a much closer look at the girl, Dianna was surprised to see how similar she looked to herself, save much thinner lips than she had, and light hazel eyes instead of jade green. Her face was a little more round as well.

"Ah, there you are Dianna," Brenda said, "Our neighbors, the Johansson's, wanted to say hello and welcome us into the area."

"Oh…well…um…hi," Dianna said quietly.

"Hello, I'm Sophie," the older woman replied, "And this is my daughter Margaret."

Margaret waved, and _maybe_ uttered a quiet hello.

"So…are these your only children?" Sophie asked.

Brenda nodded, "Yes, my two daughters."

"Oh," Sophie said disappointedly.

Margaret rolled her eyes, and Diana knew _exactly_ what this was all about. Sophie was trying to find a suitor for her daughter, who didn't look very pleased at that fact.

It didn't stop Sophie from chatting up her mom though, and Margaret's eyes quickly glazed over. She made no attempt to hide her boredom and that she didn't want to be here.

"Um…perhaps Margaret and I can take a short stroll around the neighborhood while you acquaint yourselves," Dianna suggested during a point in Sophie's chatter where she paused to take a breath, "I could use some air, and someone to talk to."

"I think that sounds like a good idea," Brenda said, and Sophie gave a nod to her daughter giving her permission to go.

Dianna waved goodbye to Rosemary who was now grousing in the living room, not liking that she was being left behind with her mother and some stranger. Margaret followed Dianna outside, and once they were clear of the yard, Margaret let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank you for getting me out of there," she said.

"I had a feeling you wanted to," Dianna smiled.

"Well, I make so secret of wanting to get away from my mom," Margaret said, "She's been trying to push me onto suitors since I was eighteen."

"And that was…how long ago?"

"Five years," Margaret replied.

"So you're just a year younger than me," Dianna commented more to herself, "I know the feeling, though my mom only started trying to find suitors for me a few months ago."

"Lucky."

"I'm sure that if I don't find one soon though, that it'll continue to go on."

"I'm considered an old maid already for not getting married at eighteen," Margaret went on, "I didn't want to get married then, and the only reason why my opinion has partially changed now is because I want to get away from my mother, but being my age, no man wants me. Plus I might be…too stubborn for them anyway."

Dianna smiled, "So you scare them off?"

"Pretty much."

Dianna already liked this girl. She was so unlike the others she had met, being her own person instead of the model child doing _everything_ their parents tell them to, from how to dress to how to act around others. She was guessing Margaret caused her mother a lot of grief that way.

"Now…I recognize you…but I don't know your name," Margaret said after a few moments of silence.

Dianna's brow furrowed in confusion, "Recognize me?"

"You were the girl who ran into his Majesty at the party weeks ago," Margaret said, "Everyone has been talking about you, except no one knew who you were, which everyone found puzzling. There are a few of the girls who know _everyone_ in our social circle. Except you."

Dianna had nearly forgot about that encounter at the party, and didn't even think about how _everyone_ must have been staring, especially with Aedan making such a scene over it. And it would make sense for Margaret to have been at the party. She was a noble, _and_ her mother was trying to find her a husband.

"Well, that might be because my family and I moved here recently," Dianna explained, "From Denerim. We felt uncomfortable living in the capital during the Blight, so we decided to move."

"Good move," Margaret said, "Denerim was destroyed during the final battle after all."

Dianna nodded in agreement. Of course, there was no need to mention they _knew_ Denerim would be destroyed. No need to make herself look crazy.

They fell into silence again as they continued walking up the street. Dianna figured she'd start conversation and ask Margaret what sort of hobbies she enjoyed.

"So…Margaret—," she began.

"Maggie, please," Margaret said, "I _hate_ my name."

"Really? Margaret is a pretty name."

"Exactly, and I'm not a pretty person," Margaret replied, "I don't do all the fancy things to warrant having a fancy pretty name. I like Maggie. Maggie suits me."

"Then Maggie it is."

* * *

From their walk around the neighborhood, Dianna discovered that Maggie also loved reading books, which drove her mother insane. Sophie wanted her to be an accomplished lady, and if reading was to be involved, it was to be educational books, not adventures or, Maker forbid, _romance_. A young woman did _not_ read that sort of material. Which she didn't…mostly. Some of her adventure books had a few scandalous scenes. Aside from the reading, Maggie also loved art. If she wasn't reading, she was sitting at her desk with a piece of charcoal and paper. She was very talented too, showing Dianna a few pieces on their way back to the house so she knew just how good she was. She also occasionally dabbled with writing, preferring her own reading and artwork over that, but when she eventually got bored of those two, she would pull out her papers that had a blossoming story over the…eight pages it had. It was a work in progress after all, and had only been started a year or two ago. Went to show how often Maggie got bored of her reading and art. Plus, Maggie didn't have pretty penmanship either. It was legible, but not pretty as girls schooled and disciplined to write as such.

Dianna also learned that Maggie wasn't afraid to speak her mind either, though she knew when to bite her tongue in some cases, taking after her father, and somewhat of her mother. Sophie apparently would blurt out things, then apologize profusely saying it wasn't what she meant, when all knew she did mean it.

By the end of their walk, the two were walking arm in arm, laughing and gossiping with each other like friends who knew each other their whole lives would. Walking into the house, Dianna glanced over to Sophie, to see her just beaming with joy. Dianna guessed Maggie didn't have many friends…or any besides herself now, for that matter, for Sophie to look that happy for Maggie socializing with someone.

Dianna couldn't stop smiling that night after they left. It felt good to finally have a friend, someone else to talk to. Things were already looking up.

* * *

Over the next week, Dianna and Maggie would spend every waking hour together. They wouldn't chatter or gossip the entire time, most of the time they would sit out in the Johansson's garden and read their books while soaking in the sunlight. On the days that Sophie forced Maggie to work on her penmanship, Dianna would join her, since she didn't know how to write the "fancy letters" either. Needless to say, Sophie was appalled that Dianna didn't learn either. Rosemary even came for those lessons, since her writing was terrible, partly to do with her reading disability. Since she didn't like reading, she didn't like writing either so her skill was sorely lacking. By the end of the week, Dianna and Maggie were glued to the hip and told each other _everything_. Well…just about everything, Dianna was still going to keep a tight lip on the fact she had a third sister, who was the fugitive the king was after, and the fact she wasn't even _born_ in this world, having landed in Ferelden over a year and a half ago. But everything that happened between her and Fergus, _that_ she told her.

"He _kissed_ you?" Maggie exclaimed, staring gawk-eyed at Dianna.

"And then I pushed him away and ran off."

"Pushed him _away_!? Are you crazy? The Teyrn kisses you, and you…run away?" Maggie asked incredulously, "My mother would have skinned me alive if I ran away from a suitor, _especially_ if he kissed me. Not to mention the _Teyrn_."

"I look like his dead wife!" Dianna argued, "So of course I ran away, he only did it because he thought I was Oriana."

"Do you know that for sure?"

Dianna pursed her lips, but her silence was all an answer Maggie needed.

"Ha! You don't! So for all you know he could like you."

"It doesn't make sense for someone to like me though," Dianna said, "I'm nothing special."

"Well, you're pretty for one," Maggie said, "Guys really only use that reason."

Dianna frowned, "I'm not pretty."

_Olyvia is the pretty one_, she added in her head.

Maggie rolled her eyes, "Whatever. Still, the _Teyrn_? The single ladies here would _kill_ to be in your position. Marrying a daughter to the Teyrn is every parent's dream here."

"Well…I doubt that'll happen, at least not soon," Dianna said, "He's still grieving over his wife. Believe me, I know, my family and I were living at the castle for a few weeks after _his majesty_ burned down our house."

"I still can't believe you were living there for a while," Maggie muttered, "Again, girls, _kill_. Seriously, they would _kill_, you or anyone they were told, to get the Teyrn's attention."

"Well then I'll make sure not to mention that to anyone else," Dianna said, "And you won't say a word either?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die," Maggie said, crossing an x over her heart with her finger.

"Stick a needle in your eye?"

"Well if I'm dead, you'd have to do that part."

* * *

Fergus's arrival in Denerim had been a tense one indeed. After the altercation at the castle, the tension only got worse, and Fergus became even more on guard. Aedan's ability to control his temper was slipping, and he could only foresee a disaster at the Landsmeet.

Then the day of the Landsmeet arrived. Though he was expecting trouble, he chose not to wear his armor, instead his finer clothes. They were brought along for a reason. So after changing, he left his Denerim estate and headed to the palace, arriving with a handful of other nobles. He took his place in front of the crowd, since he knew he would be called forth to speak. Aedan and Anora were the last to arrive, coming in from the opposite end of the hall onto a balcony, Anora's arm linked with Aedan's as they entered the room. Anora didn't look too pleased to be there, on Aedan's arm, while Aedan looked like he didn't want to be at the Landsmeet period. Fergus was glad to see he wasn't in his armor, that meant less chance of a fight breaking out. If one did, the chances of killing someone decreased. Still possible, but less likely to occur, just a lot of bruises and broken bones.

"Are you ready for this?" a familiar voice asked Fergus quietly.

Looking to his right, Fergus saw Arl Eamon standing there. Fergus inhaled deeply, and let it out slowly, "As ready as I'll ever be."

Anora greeted the nobles and addressed them as to why they were brought here to the Landsmeet. Of course, she had to mention himself, as well as Aedan, specifically, drawing many stares from the other nobles.

"Teyrn Cousland," Anora addressed him personally, "I have heard his majesty's account of what happened between the two of you last month, so I would like to hear from you of what occurred."

Fergus nodded, and stepped forward from the nobles, the few standing around him taking a step back so they could avoid Aedan's death glare. Fergus stared coolly back at him for a few moments before turning his attention back to Anora. He relayed to her the events that led up to Aedan lashing out at him, and wounding him, hearing a few gasps from the crowd at that part.

"I was told you attacked first," Anora said.

"My weapon wasn't even drawn," Fergus replied, "If you need witnesses, I have them, but they still reside in Highever. His majesty failed to kill them as he departed the city."

Anora's brow furrowed in confusion, looking up to her husband to find his face was starting to turn red from holding back his anger. She was certain he wanted to scream and yell, throw a tantrum as he always did when things didn't go his way. She was glad to see he was making some progress.

"Do you know who he speaks of?"

"He speaks of the family of our fugitive Olyvia Theirin," Aedan said venomously, "I was looking for a lead to her whereabouts and he intervened."

Anora turned back to Fergus, "You do realize that by intervening in his majesty's search for fugitives, you could be charged with aiding fugitives."

"I was just trying to protect the citizens of my city, who he was needlessly terrorizing," Fergus said, "They had done nothing wrong, his majesty sees their blood relation to the girl as a crime, which they can't help. His majesty was going about obtaining his information entirely the wrong way."

Anora asked if he could give details about what he saw, which he did, explaining how Aedan had the family on their knees when he entered and had a sword drawn on them, while they were completely defenseless.

"Did you intend to kill them, your majesty?" Anora asked, turning her gaze to her husband.

"If they didn't give me the information I wanted, yes," Aedan replied tersely.

Fergus just shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't understand how someone could feel that way, the desire to just…kill anyone who upset him. There was also the fact of how stupid that was to kill someone who could potentially give you the information you wanted when they wouldn't because then you most definitely wouldn't get it.

The nobility behind him all took a step back after Aedan's comment, scared by his bloodlust. What sort of king did they elect at the last Landsmeet? They were quickly regretting their decision.

"And this is the reason you wanted to march the army to Highever then?" Anora asked, "To war against Teyrn Cousland because he was just doing his duty, protecting his citizens?"

Aedan growled, averting his gaze, "It's more than that."

"I do not see how it is," Anora said, and looked back to Fergus, "Your account sounds viable, much more detailed and solid than his majesty's own account of the event. His majesty and I shall take a moment to discuss the situation, and allow the nobles to discuss it as well before casting for a vote."

"There isn't anything to discuss!" Aedan exclaimed, "He went against the king! He should be put to death!"

"I will also ask, Teyrn Cousland," Anora continued, ignoring her husband, "That if the votes are in your favor, that you drop your declaration of war against the throne. His majesty will not be provided any means to battle against you, and I do not wish for another civil war."

"I shall, your Highness," Fergus replied.

"This can't be settled peacefully, you know it Anora!" Aedan exclaimed, "He needs to be made an example to show what happens to those who go against the crown. He should be _executed_!"

"My Lord!" Anora hissed, "If you'll come with me, we shall _discuss_ this _privately_."

With another growl, he turned and followed Anora out of the room. Once they left, the room erupted into a flurry of whispers amongst each other. Fergus couldn't make out any conversations, just snippets of words here and there. Not like hearing what they said would change anything, if they were against him, they were against him.

Minutes passed, and Fergus was clued in that his and her majesty had returned by the sudden stop in chatter amongst the nobles. Looking up to the balcony, the King and Queen made their way up to the railing.

"So what say the rest of you?" Anora asked, sweeping a glance over the crowd, "Do you stand with Teyrn Cousland, who went against the King to protect his city and the citizens therein, or do you stand with his majesty," Anora shot a glare at Aedan, showing exactly what her opinion was as she continued, "who would have Teyrn Cousland put to death for merely getting in his way of an issue that is small in comparison to what we face after the Blight."

The nobles spoke up one by one, casting their vote, and Fergus began to relax as one after the other sided with him, save Bann Ceorlic, only because that man feared the king unlike anyone else and didn't want to incur his wrath.

"Then it has been decided," Anora spoke up again, "The charges of treason against Teyrn Cousland will be dropped, and he will be free to return home and take up his duties."

Aedan looked ready to kill, and Fergus noticed his right hand twitching, as if he wanted to grab the nonexistent sword at his hip. Again, Fergus was grateful he was not in his full plate armor, because he was certain he would have drawn his weapon and lunged at him over the banister already.

"And you, your majesty," Anora said bitterly, "We have some things to discuss as well, to deal with this irrational behavior of yours."

"Irrational! You're going to try to stop me hunting down fugitives!" Aedan yelled at her, "And you're letting _him_ go!"

"Your majesty," Anora said in a warning tone.

"I will not stand for this!" Aedan roared, "I will not let him leave in one piece!"

"AEDAN!" Anora snapped, grabbing him by his arm.

It didn't work, and Aedan went to catapult himself over the banister to get at his brother when Anora called for the guards. It wasn't the guards who were there first though, but Loghain and two fellow Grey Wardens, a mage and dwarf.

"Get off me!" Aedan snapped at them, fighting their hold, but the three of them together were too strong he couldn't break loose.

"Everyone, please leave," Anora said, pointing to the chamber doors.

The nobles didn't have to be told twice and scurried towards the door. Fergus took his time however, watching his brother with sad eyes. He was so far gone from the boy he grew up with.

Fergus watched as Loghain said something to Anora, who slapped her hands over her mouth in complete shock over what her father told her. As he reached the door, the mage placed a hand on Aedan's head, who then fell unconscious. Turning forward again, Fergus left, putting the Landsmeet behind him and looking forward to returning home. His thoughts instantly went to Dianna. He hoped to see her again, because he would not actively seek her out. She did, after all, express her desire he leave her alone.

* * *

Dianna reread the letter from her sister again for the twentieth time. Talk to him? _Talk to him_? How could she just _talk_ to him? It wasn't that simple! Was it? Really, Dianna had a hard time talking to anyone, let alone someone she liked. Olyvia did have a point though, there was a great lack of communication between her and Fergus, so all there were between them were assumptions, not truths. With a groan, Dianna dropped her head into her hands. She knew she couldn't do it. One did not simply just…_tell_ their crush you liked them! But again, her sister had a point. If she never told him, she could miss out on something great if it worked out. But if he wasn't interested, she would at least know that, and not waste time wondering if it could be, missing out on other opportunities to find love and live a happy life.

She was pulled out of her reverie by her mother, who poked her head into her room to tell her Maggie was downstairs. She thanked her mother for informing her, her friend was here before folding up the letter, tucking it back into its envelope, and hid it inside a book and stuffed it back into the top shelf of the bookshelf in her room. As she made her way downstairs, she decided to ask Maggie what she should do. Would she agree with her sister?

* * *

Maggie did agree with Olyvia, only Dianna didn't say she already got the advice from her third sister, who "didn't exist". She only asked Maggie if she thought she should talk to the Teyrn about her feelings, and what was going on between them. Maggie agreed wholeheartedly, and tried to push her to the castle only to be reminded that the Teyrn had not yet returned from Denerim. Maggie wasn't about to let her get out of it though, and told her, the moment the Teyrn returned, she better go speak with him.

It had been over two weeks since he had been gone, and Dianna couldn't help but worry that perhaps…he wouldn't be returning, as he had feared. Then she tried telling herself that he either was still in Denerim, because Landsmeets could take time, or he was still on his way home. She was trying to be optimistic, but her pessimistic side won more often than not.

After another week and a half had passed, Dianna and Maggie went out to the Market, perusing the shops just to look and pass the time, on their way to the bookstore, when they heard a clamor from the main street leading to the market.

"What do you think is going on?" Maggie asked as they saw people rushing over to see for themselves what the uproar was about.

Dianna shrugged, "I don't know. Perhaps a brawl?"

"Doesn't sound like a brawl to me," Maggie said, "Believe me, I know what they sound like. My dad starts them _all_ _the time_."

They paused with their perusing to watch the road, and Dianna's heart leapt into her throat as the crowd parted to allow the Teyrn and his guard through. The citizens were very happy to see he had returned. Dianna however, was panicking and ducked behind a barrel full of dry beans.

"Oh, look it's your cru-ush," Maggie teased, looking over to where she thought her friend was to find she was gone, and a brief glance around showed her where she was hiding, "Dianna! What are you doing down there? Get up and get your butt out there and say hello!"

"No! I can't talk to him yet," Dianna said, shaking her head.

"Well, I've already caught his attention," Maggie said, "Oh wait, never mind, he looked away. Guess he thought I was you. Not surprising, we look rather similar. Eerily similar actually."

Dianna let out a squeak and scooted around the backside of the barrel when Maggie said Fergus was looking their way. She didn't want him seeing her. Not yet. She was certain he'd stop to speak with her, and she didn't want him to in the Market, where _everyone_ would see.

"Dianna," Maggie said in a threatening tone, "Don't make me drag you out here. We agreed you'd go speak to him once he returned."

"We didn't _agree_ to anything!" Dianna squeaked, "You just told me I had to."

"So why are you hiding?"

"Because I…I _can't_," Dianna said, "Not yet. Give me some time. _And_ him."

Maggie sighed in frustration, "I'll give you two days. After that, I'll drag you to the castle myself."

"Why?" Dianna whined, "Why are you doing this to me?"

"Because, I'm trying to save you the pain of having a mother forever trying to set you up with a suitor."

* * *

Fergus was absolutely elated to be back home in Highever, despite the fact he was tired, beaten and sore. He and his men ran into a group of darkspawn just a day from the city, and he ended up losing a few good men to the creatures. It would take a good week to heal from his own injuries, even with Elliot healing him. The wound may be gone, but the ache would still be there.

At least now he no longer had the worry of a civil war, it being…somewhat settled. Aedan wouldn't be allowed to march his army here, and he still technically could visit as a guest to Highever, but he knew that Aedan wouldn't ever come back. Not as a guest at least. If he did, Fergus knew he'd have some ulterior plans than what would be given. As of now, the two brothers would merely tolerate each other.

After being seen to by Elliot, and a hot bath, he ate an early supper before retiring to his room. He needed, and deserved, a good, long, night's sleep. Almost immediately after shutting his eyes, Dianna's face popped up in his mind. With a heavy sigh, he wondered how she was doing, and whether she still felt bitter towards him. Not like he'd ever know, he doubted he'd see her again, as much as he wished to.

* * *

It was day two and Dianna couldn't believe she found herself on the road leading to the castle. Would the guard even let her in? Perhaps they wouldn't and she could use that as an excuse as to why she couldn't see Fergus. She hadn't quite mustered her courage to speak with him, but she did muster enough to head to the castle, hoping the rest would come when needed.

Approaching the front gates, she was stopped momentarily by the guard, asking what business she had here. They addressed her by name, so they still remembered her from when she and her family stayed here, but even so, they couldn't just let her pass. She explained how she wished to speak with the Teyrn, if at all possible. Part of her was hoping they would say no, but since the Teyrn wasn't currently busy with anything too important, there was no need for her to make an appointment to see him so they granted her passage. Stuttering a thank you, she headed on through and up towards the castle doors. She was let in by the guard there, and once inside, she asked another where the Teyrn might be, though she had an idea already. And as she suspected, she was told to go to the study.

Her nerves began to rise as she got closer to the study, her heart pounding so loudly in her ears it drowned out everything else around her. She wasn't sure she could do this anymore, she was freaking out about talking with Fergus. Reaching the library doorway, she almost turned around and left, but she stopped herself after she turned, and slowly turned back around and forced herself to walk inside and over to the study door. She hesitated in front of the door for a few minutes, wringing her hands together nervously. After standing there for nearly two minutes, she took in a deep breath, closed her eyes, raised her hand, and rapped her knuckles against the door. She opened her eyes, let the breath she had been holding out in a rush, and a few seconds after letting her hand drop to her side, the door opened to reveal Fergus on the other side.

"D-Dianna?" he stammered, his eyes wide in disbelief.

"Hello…Fergus," Dianna replied quietly, her face growing hot as her cheeks flushed pink.

Fergus's lips spread into a smile, "I thought…you didn't wish to see me again."

"Well, I may have thought that for some time," Dianna said, "And I…I was trying to find any reason not to come, but…I think we need to talk. Clear the air between us."

He nodded, and stepped aside to let her enter the study, which she did, her heart leaping into her throat and beating ever faster once he shut the door behind them.

"I did leave while we were still on a rather…sour note," Fergus said, walking around her over to his desk before turning to face her again, "I'm glad you've come. I was hoping to see you again, if only just to apologize again for my…behavior."

"Which is why I'm here, to talk about your behavior," Dianna said.

Fergus sighed, "I assume you are still upset with me."

"Well it depends on what we discuss today," Dianna said, "There was a misunderstanding between us, I'm sure, about the reasons you acted the way you did towards me. I made assumptions, and thought I was right, believing there couldn't be any other reason because…no one likes me. No one has ever liked me, so I doubted, I still do, that you could have any feelings toward me, only Oriana, who you see in me."

Fergus's countenance softened, "Dianna…I see less and less of Oriana in you every time I see you. Yes you share many physical qualities, but…even then there are still many differences. I apologize for making you think I was only using you."

Licking her dry lips, she nodded, "Apology accepted."

Fergus took a few steps closer, and her nerves spiked again, making her unable to keep eye contact with his.

"If I may ask," Fergus said lowly, "Why did you get so upset over it? Was it just because it was unwanted…or was there something else?"

She knew this was the reason she came here, to tell him that exactly, but now that she _had_ to say it, her mouth went dry, her tongue twisting itself into knots.

"Since I thought the affection was only because I looked like Oriana, I was hurt because…," she swallowed hard and forced herself to look up into his warm brown eyes, "because I…I like you Fergus."

He took another step closer so he was easily within arm's reach, and lifted a hand to gently caress her face.

"Would you believe me if I said I like you too?" he asked quietly.

"I-I would find it h-h-hard to believe, since no one has ever l-liked me," Dianna stammered.

"Which I find impossible," Fergus said, "Dianna…from the little I've gotten to know you, I think you are an amazing woman, and I'd like to get to know you better."

Nerves getting the better of her, Dianna averted her gaze and ducked her head down, "But I-I'm a n-nobody."

Fergus's hand cupped her chin, turning her face up to his once more, "That is not true Dianna."

She didn't say anything for a few moments, not sure _what_ to say, if anything. Since she wasn't speaking, Fergus spoke again.

"Do you not believe I like you…for you?"

"I've already said, I find it hard to believe."

"Then what do I have to do to prove it to you?"

Dianna shrugged, averting her gaze again. It wouldn't prove much of anything if she had to tell him what to do. She wanted him to be himself, because only then would she believe him.

"Dianna," he whispered.

A shiver rattled down her spine hearing the soft tones of his voice saying her name in the manner he had, and once again found her eyes drawn to his. Why, why, _why_ did he have this effect on her? His fingers moved from her chin to gently brush up the side of her face and over her cheekbone, sending the electrical jolt across her skin and down her body, causing her fingers to get all tingly again.

Fergus wanted to kiss her more than ever at that moment, staring into her entrancing jade eyes, but restrained his impulses. Now wouldn't be the time, she was still getting used to the fact that he liked _her_, not because she looked like Oriana, but because of who she was as an individual. Dropping his hand, he took a half step back and cleared his throat in an effort to calm his own nerves. Just because he had courted Oriana and was married before, it didn't mean he didn't get nervous around a pretty girl, not to mention a pretty girl he liked.

"Perhaps I could see you again tomorrow?" Fergus asked, "And we could…go somewhere?"

_Nice Fergus, very nice, go somewhere? You couldn't think of anywhere specific? Like she'll agree _now!

"Um…I-I guess I could…when?"

Fergus wanted to smack himself. He really couldn't think things through, not while around Dianna at least.

"Noon," Fergus replied. That would give him plenty of time to think of something to do.

If Dianna could have blushed anymore, she would have, but as of now her face was already beet red and would combust into flame any second, "A-a-alright…I'll uh…I'll meet you here then…at noon."

They stood there in silence, no longer looking at each other but at anything else in the room. After a few moments, Dianna _needed_ to get out of there, if she didn't her heart was going to go into cardiac arrest.

"Well I-I best be going," Dianna said, pointing to the door as she backed up, "S-see you t-tomorrow."

Fergus hurried past to open the door for her before she could reach it, "Until then," and before she could leave he gently took her hand and lifted it to his bowed head, and Dianna's heart just about died as he pressed his lips to her knuckles, sending another shockwave through her body.

"Goodbye Dianna," he said softly.

She gave a curt nod, unable to speak, and flew out of there the instant he let go of her hand. Talk about nerve-wracking, she couldn't believe she actually admitted her crush to her crush. And she wasn't even rejected! But there was still that doubt in her head that Fergus was still holding onto his wife, and only saw Oriana in her. Perhaps giving it sometime would allow her to see just how he felt exactly.

Now that the big obstacle was overcome, Dianna just had a few things to worry about now. Such as what she was going to wear tomorrow. She _never_ worried about what to wear, and here she was, fretting over that. Love, it made people do weird things.


	6. Chapter 6

**Yeah I got this chapter done! FINALLY! Not too happy with it, but it's done. Got distracted by the beautiful spring weather. Aahh, I love the sunshine, and the colors. Hate the pollen though. Allergies **_**suck**_**.**

**csorciere: I decided Dianna needed a friend, so a friend she got. Maggie's mom is the type to attempt to thwart anything happening between Fergus and Dianna so her own daughter could get seen, but Maggie wouldn't go along with it. Will probably cause problems in the future. ;)**

**Larryeneno: That awkward stage is sooooo difficult to overcome, isn't it?**

**Isala Uthenera: You don't have to worry about Maggie. It's her mother that's the concern.**

**Pollyanna24: Right, Rosemary…well, we are focusing on Dianna. I do try to put her in as often as I can though.**

**HorrorZombabe: Thank you! XD**

**donna: Why thank you! Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. XD**

**CHAPTER SIX**

It was a rare thing indeed for Dianna to get up willingly early in the morning. The days she found herself unable to sleep she might have gotten up momentarily, but would eventually find her way back under the warm covers. This morning she was up at the crack of dawn, going through the dresses in her closet trying to find something to wear for that afternoon. All the ruckus she was making from tossing things around woke Rosemary next door, who shuffled into the room, bleary eyed and had bedhead that would frighten darkspawn.

"What are you doing?" Rosemary rasped, her throat not yet clear from any muck that was in it from sleeping.

Dianna whirled around, only to jump in surprise seeing her sister's hair before bursting into a fit of giggles, "Your hair looks monstrous."

Rosemary grumbled under her breath, clearly disliking her hair being referred to as a monster, "You woke me up. What are you doing? It's probably like…6:30 in the morning or something."

"Or something," Dianna said, "I'm trying to find something to wear for…later today."

Dianna wasn't about to tell her sister she had a date. She wouldn't stop pestering until she found out who it was she was seeing, and then would announce it to the whole city of Highever, which Dianna most certainly didn't want. She'd like to keep her head for at least a little while longer, though she doubted it'd take long for the gossiping young noblewoman of Highever to hear the Teyrn was interested in her. They weren't quite dating, or courting as the term was here, since he had only asked to see her once again, but there was always the slightest chance that he would ask to court her.

"What's so important that you have to wake us all up searching for a dress?" Rosemary asked, before her half-closed eyes flew wide open, "Wait a second, are you meeting someone? Going on a date? Did someone ask you out?"  
How the hell did Rosemary deduce that already being half asleep? Dianna began to panic slightly, her sister _couldn't_ know. She had to think up an excuse quick.

"Maggie is taking me somewhere," Dianna lied, "To help get my mind off of…other things. I just want to be sure I'll be wearing the proper attire."

What _would_ the proper attire be anyway? She had no idea what Fergus had in mind, she might need something extravagant, which she only had one dress of now, or something more simple, or something that could take some abuse. They were right on the beach after all, they might go there, especially now that the weather was getting warm.

Rosemary's eyes fluttered back to half-closed, "Oh, okay. Well, could you be a little quieter? I'm going back to bed."

Dianna nodded, and Rosemary shuffled her way out of the room again. Once she was gone, Dianna whirled around and began digging through the closet once more. What the hell should she wear?

* * *

She eventually settled on a simple, olive green dress that complimented her skin tone and hazelnut locks. Once that was done, Dianna headed downstairs where her mother was cooking breakfast, and asked if she could french braid her hair when she was done. Her mother also asked why, what her plans were, and told her the same lie as she did to Rosemary. So after breakfast, her mother did that, french braiding her hair halfway so she still had some loose locks.

"Is Maggie taking you out somewhere to find a date?" Brenda asked.

"Um…more or less…I guess," Dianna replied, "Finding a guy wouldn't be so bad…right?"

"Not at all, as long as he's decent," her mother replied.

Dianna wrung her hands together nervously. Oh she hated lying to her mom, but Rosemary was down here as well, so she couldn't tell her mother. She'd tell her later, she promised herself that. Surely she'd understand too.

Once her hair was finished, Dianna passed the time reading until the sundial outside read eleven o'clock. She said goodbye to her mother and sister and headed over to Maggie's. She'd have to use her to get away, since she made up the story of them going out.

"Wait, so I'm your scapegoat?" Maggie asked once Dianna explained the situation to her.

"Um…yes?" Dianna replied with an innocent smile.

Maggie sighed, "You owe me for this."

"You'll just have to walk with me just to the edge of the neighborhood," Dianna said.

"But then I'll have to go off and do something else for a few hours before heading home so your family won't suspect anything," Maggie retorted.

"Right…um…I promise I'll make it up to you somehow."

"You better. Now let's get going. Don't want to keep your date waiting."

* * *

Maggie walked with Dianna to the outskirts of their neighborhood before parting, and Dianna's insides were all knotted up as she walked by herself up to the castle. The guards didn't even stop her or ask her what her business was as she approached, just silently letting her through. It was obvious Fergus had spoken with them about her returning this day and to let her through.

Entering the castle, she made her way to the study, since she figured that was where Fergus would be. It was sort of the unsaid meeting place. Reaching the study, she found he wasn't there. Well, it wasn't quite noon, perhaps he was busy with something.

She paced the width of the room for a few minutes before finally sitting down in an available chair to wait. The pacing wasn't doing anything to help her nerves so there wasn't any point in wasting her energy doing that. Still, she couldn't stop fidgeting, bouncing the balls of her feet off the ground and wringing her hands together. She nearly jumped when the study door opened again a few minutes later, Fergus stepping into the room.

"I apologize if I kept you waiting," Fergus said.

Dianna got to her feet, "You haven't…I uh…I've only been here a few minutes."

Fergus nodded, and looked around nervously, avoiding eye contact with Dianna. After a few seconds of silence he cleared his throat and looked at Dianna.

"Shall we go then?" he asked.

"Sure," Dianna replied, walking towards the door.

She could feel her face heat up as Fergus offered his arm to her, and she shakily gave hers to him, the butterflies erupting in her stomach as their arms made contact. It was making her feel a little ill actually, the beating in her stomach. She took in a deep breath hoping to keep her stomach contents from coming up. Throwing up in front of Fergus was the last thing she wanted.

"So where are we going?" Dianna asked once she found her voice, being already down the hall from the study.

"I thought we might…take a ride up into the hills," Fergus replied, "Is that alright?"

"Of course," Dianna replied quickly, "That's fine. That's great."

Then she looked down at her dress. How was she supposed to ride a horse with this? She knew how to ride, but the normal way, not the…side saddle way. Reaching the stables, she saw there were two horses already saddled up and ready to go.

"Selwyn will be your mount," Fergus said, leading her to a silvery colored horse with grey spots on its shoulders and hindquarters, her mane and tail a shocking white, "She's very well tempered and easy to guide."

Dianna bit her lip. It was now or never that she tell Fergus she didn't know how to ride with a dress on, or else she may end up hurting herself. Plus, one looked different than the other so she guessed he just assumed that's how she would ride.

"Fergus…I'm afraid I do not know the…art of riding side saddle. I've always rode the…normal way."

"Well I'm surprised you know how to ride at all," Fergus said, "Not many of the noblewomen practice such an…art, though it is more common than riding the normal way."

Dianna's cheeks flushed red at Fergus's teasing grin and turned her head away. So obviously side saddle wasn't referred to as an art. What was she supposed to call it anyway? It sounded good in her head, but now she was regretting saying anything.

Fergus laughed as she turned away to hide her face, "I don't mean to embarrass you. As I was saying though, I'm sure your ability to ride will make it far easier to adjust to side saddle. The noblewomen prefer to be carted around in a carriage rather than climb onto a smelly horse."

"They're not smelly," Dianna said, stepping up to Selwyn and letting the horse sniff her hand before running her fingers over the silky hair on her hose, "Goes to show how well groomed they are, spoiled horses."

"Ready to get on?" Fergus asked, moving to Dianna's side once more.

Looking at the saddle warily, Dianna hesitantly nodded. She was praying she wouldn't slip off the saddle and get trampled during their trek. She made a mental note that if anything did go anywhere between her and Fergus, to buy or make a riding dress, since she got the notion he enjoyed riding and there was no way she was going to ride side saddle again, especially if this went south.

The butterflies were beating away in her stomach again as Fergus grabbed onto her waist and helped her get situated on the saddle.

"You alright?" he asked.

Dianna rocked her hips slightly to make sure she wouldn't slide, and seeing it wasn't going to happen, not anytime soon at least, nodded. Fergus stayed by the horse a few moments to be sure she was fine and wouldn't fall off before going over to his horse, another light colored one though his was more of a cloudy grey than silver, and mounted as well. He guided his horse over to Dianna's, "Ready?"

She nodded again, and after Fergus slowly urged his horse forward a few steps, figured how to nudge Selwyn with her feet to get the horse moving and caught up to Fergus, following at his side as he led them away from the castle grounds. Though she may not have slid much when they were standing still, Dianna was already starting to feel a little off balance. She was more focused on staying on the horse she wasn't registering where they were going, just occasionally giving her surroundings a glance to see they had changed from castle walls, to grassy hills, to a wooded area.

"Are you doing alright Dianna?" Fergus asked, casting a worried glance her way, "You look… tense."

"I'm riding side saddle, of course I'm tense," Dianna replied, "But…I am doing alright…I think."

"If this was a bad idea and you're not enjoying yourself, tell me now and we can go back," Fergus said, his countenance becoming grim, "I should have known better than to go on a ride."

"No! No it's fine," Dianna said. He seemed to have put a lot of thought into this, and she _loved_ horseback riding, just the comfy…or at least the _easier_ way. "Maybe next time you can give me a warning on what sort of attire I should wear. That way my time spent going through my clothes will be cut in half."

"I'll try to remember that for next time, I promise."

Dianna adjusted herself on the saddle in a less precarious position so she could take a moment to enjoy her surroundings, the whole point of the ride. They had been out for a while already, and were well into the wooded area. Now that she was looking, Dianna was just awed by the magnificent trees, which looked a lot like the Redwood trees back "home", reaching way up into the sky, and the warm, soft sunlight filtering through the branches.

"Oh wow," she said breathlessly.

Fergus couldn't help but chuckle, "Just now noticed?"

"I was a little focused on staying on the saddle, thank you very much," Dianna retorted, "At any rate, it's very beautiful here. It feels…familiar."

"Have you been here before then?"

Dianna shook her head, "No, but I don't need to have been here before for it to feel familiar."

"I guess not," Fergus agreed.

"It's also comforting," Dianna said, taking in a deep breath of the damp coastal air, listening to the roar of the ocean far in the distance, screeches of gulls, twitters of sparrows and other fowls in the woods, "I love the outdoors."

"Well, that's another thing I'm surprised to find," Fergus said, and rather quietly as if he wasn't sure whether he wanted Dianna to hear.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dianna asked, raising an eyebrow at him, almost threateningly.

"Most women I've known preferred to stay inside, where it was safe and there were less bugs and animals," Fergus replied.

"Let me guess, Oriana?" Dianna asked blandly.

Fergus sighed, "You can't expect me to stop thinking about her completely Dianna."

Dianna's face flushed red in shame, "I'm sorry, I don't expect you to, it's just…I'd prefer you try to avoid drawing parallels between the two of us. Aren't there any other women in your life?"

"None that I know well enough to draw parallels between," Fergus said, "The two women I was closest to are both gone."

Dianna glanced over to Fergus to see the raw pain on his face. Dropping her head again she mentally dropkicked herself. Way to go Dianna, make him even more miserable on this trip. This was supposed to be an uplifting, fun date!

"I'm sorry," Dianna apologized, "I didn't mean to bring up anything upsetting."

"I can't avoid it forever," Fergus said, "So don't worry about it. I've been able to handle it better, since some time has passed since I heard the news. That's really the only cure for a tragedy like this, time."

Dianna nodded in agreement. Though she hadn't lost any immediate family, she had lost her grandparents on her father's side and she and all her sisters were really close to their grandfather. He was even the one who taught them how to ride.

"I can relate, if only a little," Dianna said, "My grandfather, whom I was really close to, he passed away a few years ago. I still miss him."

"I can understand that," Fergus said quietly.

Dianna watched Fergus with a sad expression, seeing the pain still on his face, before she was ripped out of any thought as she felt her body lose its equilibrium. She emitted a small squeak as she slipped off the holds on the saddle and fell to the ground, landing hard on her back. Selwyn stopped immediately, feeling the loss of weight on her back, and Fergus pulled his horse to a stop and dismounted, hurrying over to Dianna's side.

"Are you alright?" Fergus asked, looking somewhat concerned behind the smile he was trying to fight and offered her his hands.

"Fine," Dianna groaned as she grabbed his hands and hoisted herself up off the ground, "So you can laugh now."

"I wasn't going to laugh," Fergus said quickly, now looking a little too innocent.

Dianna looked at him doubtfully, "Riiiiiight."

"Ready to get back up on the horse?" Fergus asked, obviously trying to change the subject.

Dianna gave Selwyn a cautious glance.

"I told you she was very well tempered," Fergus said, seeing the look on her face, "There's nothing to worry about."

"Except falling again."

Fergus shrugged, "Everyone falls eventually. You were doing quite well though."

"I guess…okay, I'll get back on now."

Again with Fergus's help, Dianna got back on Selwyn and situated in the saddle. As Fergus got onto his horse, Dianna realized she hadn't been introduced to him…or her…whichever it was.

"So what's your horse's name?" she asked, "I'm just curious."

"This is Brogan," he replied, "I've had him for about ten years. Not as easy going as Selwyn, but still a great companion."

Dianna coaxed Selwyn forward as Fergus continued onward, and chanced letting one had go of the bridle and running her hand over Selwyn's neck, "Who does Selwyn belong to? Or…did…?"

"She was my mothers," Fergus replied, "Probably why she's so well behaved. No one dared get on my mother's bad side."

"Not even a horse?"

"Not even a horse."

Dianna chuckled. His mother must have been a force to reckon with.

Silence fell between them, though Dianna didn't mind much this time. She loved listening to the groan of the branches bending as the wind swept through, the rustle of the leaves and the songs the birds were singing to each other. She was getting lost in it when Fergus pulled her out from her reverie.

"Once we reach the top we can stop and have a bite to eat," he said, "I brought some lunch, I thought you wouldn't have eaten."

"I didn't, no," Dianna said, "So that sounds good."

Fergus nodded, turning his attention forward again to keep an eye on where he was going. Dianna went back to looking around, and up ahead saw a branch hanging over her side of the path. It was high enough still that it wouldn't hit her in the head, but it looked like she would be able to reach it if she tried. She looked down at her dress again, then the branch. Oh what the hell, she was going to do it anyway. As she came upon the branch she raised her hands up, and sure enough she could practically wrap her forearms around. Grabbing on with her hands, she hoisted herself up off the saddle, and onto the branch, reaching for another as she continued to climb up. It may have been childish, but she was willing to bet the view would be amazing if she could get up high enough. That was, if Fergus wouldn't freak out about her climbing up so high.

Selwyn stopped a few feet away from the tree, since her rider was gone again, and Fergus turned his head around to see what was going on to find Dianna wasn't on Selwyn again. His eyes didn't have to look around much before finding Dianna making her way up the tree.

"Dianna, what are you doing?" Fergus asked, walking his horse back.

"Don't look up!" Dianna said quickly.

Fergus dropped his gaze back down, a blush spreading across his cheeks. It would be very un-gentlemanlike for him to peek up her skirt, plus embarrassing for her.

"Um…just uh…w-why exactly are you climbing the tree?" Fergus asked.

"Because it sounded fun."

Fergus couldn't help but smile. He hadn't known any woman who'd climb trees for fun either, they were too much of a _lady_ to participate in any boyish or childish activities.

"And just how far up do you intend to climb?" Fergus asked a while later, chancing a look up to see where she was to find she was still climbing.

"Until I get to see what the view is like from way up here."

She would be up there for a while then. Fergus didn't like the idea of her being way, way, _way_ up there with the chance of falling to her death.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Fergus asked.

"Oh don't be such a worry wart," Dianna said, "I'll be fine."

Fergus wasn't familiar with that terminology, but he understood the meaning just the same. Still, he couldn't sit idly while she was potentially putting herself in harm's way, plus the plan was to spend time together, not do their own thing. With a sigh, Fergus dismounted and tied the horses to the tree next over so they wouldn't run off, and followed after Dianna. As childish as it may have been, he had to admit he couldn't help but wonder what Highever looked like from such a perfect vantage point, how much one would be able to see, and whether it would be as magnificent as one would expect.

"You realize this isn't the safest activity," Fergus said as he scaled the tree after her.

"Perhaps not," Dianna replied, "But it's still fun."

Dianna continued her way upwards until she had reached just above most of the other trees, meaning she was very high up. Sitting on a sturdy branch, she cast her eyes around and was awestruck by what she saw. The view was indeed stunning, being able to see some of the sprawling city while she could look forever across the ocean. Highever Castle stood tall and magnificent in the afternoon light, which gleamed off the glass windows, giving it a slight glow about it.

It took quite a few minutes for Fergus to catch up to Dianna, but by the time he did, his breathing was slightly labored, and he looked down nervously.

"You know, I've never been up anywhere high enough to figure out I'm afraid of heights," Fergus said, looping his arms around a branch as he stood on another so his face was level with Dianna's, and only about six inches away, "We are very high up."

"But isn't the view worth it?"

Fergus gave a sweeping glance over his lands, and it was a marvel, but it was when he looked back at Dianna's smiling face that he gave his reply, "Definitely worth it."

Dianna was too busy admiring the view that she didn't realize Fergus admiring her. Fergus was glad to see she was enjoying herself, and she really looked so beautiful when she smiled.

"So how long are we going to stay up here?" he asked.

Dianna turned to face him with a chuckle, her cheeks growing warm seeing how close his face was to hers, "We can go down now if you wish."

"Well uh…I don't want to rush you, if you're enjoying yourself we can wait."

She tried thinking about what to do, but her mind was a bit befuddled staring into Fergus's dark eyes and having him _right there_. She found herself leaning in towards him, feeling an irresistible tug, and he started to lean in as well. Her stomach growling is what snapped her back into reality and she rocked back a few inches, wondering to herself what the heck she was doing.

"Food sounds good."

"Then let's carefully make our decent," Fergus said, "Ladies first?"

"I can tell you want down, you can go first," Dianna said with a laugh.

Fergus wasn't about to argue and made his decent, Dianna allowing him a few minutes to climb before making her way down as well. She didn't want to accidently step on him by descending faster than he was, and she figured he'd be as careful as he could going down to avoid a long fall.

Fergus made it down safely, letting out a breath of relief being on the solid ground again. He glanced up briefly to see just how far Dianna had left to go, which wasn't far, she had kept up with him fairly well. Even though she proved she was capable of taking care of herself, he wasn't sure how she'd handle the drop from the last branch. It was about ten feet up in the air and the drop had jarred his legs, and considering how easily Dianna twisted her ankle at the beach weeks ago, he couldn't help but worry.

"Do you need my help to get down?"

"I think I'll do just fine, you can stop fretting," Dianna replied.

"Well…it's just it's a bit of a drop."

Dianna sighed, and sat down on the last branch, "Very well, if it'll make you feel better."

"I just want to avoid any harm befalling either of us," Fergus replied, stepping over to where she was so he could catch her as she dropped and held out his arms.

"Are you ready?" Dianna asked.

Fergus nodded, so Dianna went ahead and scooted off the limb, dropping into Fergus's arms, which wrapped tightly around her stopping her feet from hitting the ground, but also bringing her flush against him. Her face turned red yet again being inches from his, and could feel his heart thrumming against her ribcage as he just held her there. And again, she felt that tugging sensation, the urge to kiss him, but she wasn't going to! No!

"Um…well," Dianna cleared her throat loudly and averted her gaze, "H-how much further to go before lunch?"

Fergus seemed to snap back to reality, and gently set Dianna down onto her feet, "Not much further. Let's get you back onto Selwyn."

Once on the horses again, they continued onward to the top of the hill, which led to a cliff's edge overlooking the ocean. Fergus tied the horses to a tree before setting up for the picnic.

"Thank you," Dianna said as she snacked on some cheese and apples.

"For what?" Fergus asked, "I mean…you're welcome."

Dianna chuckled, "For taking me somewhere outside. I love the outdoors, and I've always held a fondness for the coastal region."

"Sounds like I lucked out with my choice of an outing," Fergus said, "In my younger days, when I courted women it never ah…turned out so well."

"They thought horses were stinky creatures?"

Fergus laughed halfheartedly, "That and disliked getting themselves wet. Since I live right next to the water, that was a frequented spot. I was young though, and playful, and thought splashing the ladies would be fun."

Dianna chuckled, "I'm guessing it didn't turn out so well for you."

"Most of them just stormed off in a huff," Fergus said, "One actually slapped me for it. I finally learned after that."

"Was it Oriana who slapped you?"

"Oh no," Fergus replied, "I had already learned my lesson by the time I met her."

"Ah," Dianna muttered, taking another bite, "Well…I like the beach."

"I'll keep it in mind."

They fell into silence as they ate their lunch, both just staring out at the ocean's horizon, avoiding eye contact with each other. They felt if they made eye contact, they would need to come up with something to talk about, and Fergus was still wracking his brain for something worthwhile to talk about.

"What was it like, growing up here and in a castle?" Dianna asked out of the blue a few moments later, finally turning to look at him.

"It was…fine I guess," Fergus replied, "I never got away with much of anything, not with my mother. Boy, when I did something bad, I'd get the scolding of a lifetime. Not to mention hit with a switch. That hurt."

"My dad would have my sisters and I choose our switch when we got in trouble," Dianna said, "We quickly learned to grab the biggest piece of wood we could."

Fergus laughed, "If only my mother were so lenient. I don't mean to make her sound like a terrible woman, I deserved the lashings I earned. She was a very kind and loving woman when you stayed in line."

"What happened with Aedan then?" Dianna couldn't help but ask, "Did he get away with misbehaving or did your mother decide to be more lenient on him? I mean…he's not very respectful or nice while you've turned out to be quite the gentleman."

"You flatter me," Fergus said with a humble smile, "But yes, he did actually manage to get away with certain things, though the times mother did catch him she gave him an earful."

"Yet he never learned his lesson."

Fergus's countenance grew solemn, "It appears not."

They were silent for a few moments while Fergus wrestled with his emotions before he spoke again, "But I guess the answer you were looking for was living at the castle was a good life. Hard in its own way, with the sort of training I went through, but certainly easier than living in a city, fending for yourself. How about you? What was your upbringing like?"

"Well…," Dianna paused, wondering what exactly she should say because she wasn't originally from this world, "Um…my family has always been well off, we've never been wanting before. I'm sure you've noticed we're not like…other nobility."

"Yes, none of you have any airs about you, which is odd, yet refreshing."

"Yeah…my parents don't feel like they are better than anyone else, we're all people, each one of us deserving respect."

"It's a good code to live by," Fergus agreed, "Now…what is your sister like?"

Dianna gave Fergus a guarded look. Why was he suddenly so interested in Olyvia?

"She's like any other girl," Dianna said, "Why do you want to know?"

"I know you and Rosemary, yet I know nothing about Olyvia," Fergus replied, "I'm just curious. If you do not wish to discuss it, that's fine."

Dianna nibbled on a piece of cheese as she thought it over. She doubted Fergus would plan on using anything she told him, but she couldn't help but be cautious. His brother wanted her dead after all.

"She's very creative," Dianna said, "Artistic and such you know. She loves to laugh, and make others laugh, and she's a very kind person. She always has reached out to those others would normally shun, though it may mainly be because she didn't want others treated like she was when she was younger."

"She was bullied?"

Dianna nodded, "At least none of the bullies ever wanted to kill her. I can't understand…why your brother wants to kill…," Dianna sobbed, "my sister. If she did something to him, he well deserved it, but she doesn't have to _die_ for it."

Reaching over with a hand, Fergus grabbed one of Dianna's in his, giving it a consoling squeeze, "I'm sorry about that. I hope for you and your family's sake that Aedan never accomplishes the goal he's set for himself."

"The only thing I wish for, is my sister to be able to come home," Dianna said quietly, tears running down her cheeks, "I miss her."

Clasping Dianna's hand with both his hands now, Fergus gently caressed the back of her hand with a thumb. Because of his brother, she had lost someone dear to her. He hoped that eventually everything would be able to work itself out and she could have her family back. Only he knew that for her to get her sister back, he would lose the last of his.

* * *

Dianna and Fergus stayed out for quite a few hours, just talking and getting to know each other, the conversation getting lighter after the initial start. After arriving back to the castle, Fergus offered to walk her home.

"I can manage just fine on my own, but thank you for the offer," Dianna replied a little too quickly.

Fergus gave her an odd look, "It's getting late though…are you su—?"

"Positively sure, yes," Dianna said with a nod.

Now Fergus knew she was trying to avoid _something_, "Okay Dianna, what is it?"

"What's what?" she asked innocently.

"You seem awfully insistent that I don't walk you home," Fergus said, "A simple, _no thank you, I'll be fine_ wouldn't have raised any alarms. Do you not wish to be seen with me?"

A guilty expression crossed Dianna's face as she strummed her fingers together, "Well…maybe partially…but only with some people…like my neighborhood…and my parents?"

Fergus raised a questioning eyebrow, but said nothing because his face said it all.

"I didn't tell my parents okay," Dianna confessed, "I told them I was hanging out with Maggie. I didn't…I didn't want them making a big deal over it. A-and then I-I-I'm not ready for my neighbors to see I'm…courting the Teyrn."

"Oh, I see how it is," Fergus laughed, "When am I going to speak with your father though to actually get his permission to court you?"

"Shouldn't you have done that before you asked me earlier?"

"Good point, but I wanted to see how things went between us before asking to see you exclusively," Fergus replied.

Dianna bit her lip. He had a point, sort of, but still he couldn't walk her home. Not tonight.

"I…I'm not ready for them to know yet," she said quietly.

"Very well," Fergus said, "I do wish to see you again, however, I would prefer to speak to your father beforehand."

"A-alright."

"So tomorrow is out of the question?"

"Definitely."

Fergus chuckled, "Then I shall wait to hear from you, giving me the permission to speak with your father."

Dianna nodded, and before she had the chance to go, Fergus took her hand and raised it to his lips, pressing them ever so gently against her skin. Warmth spread throughout her body yet again, especially since Fergus seemed to hold it longer than what seemed normal.

"Until later," he said once he stood up straight again.

She just nodded again, said a quiet goodbye and made her way out of the castle. As Fergus had stated earlier, it was getting rather late so she was hoping her parents would believe she and Maggie had been out for this whole time without wandering back home. Usually they would only be out for a few hours at a time.

* * *

When Dianna arrived back at the house, she found her parents sitting in the living room, a not so pleasant expression on their faces as she entered.

"Um…hi Mom, Dad," Dianna said, "Is uh…is everything alright?"

"Yes, just fine," her mother replied, "We were just curious as to where you've been all day."

Dianna's stomach dropped. How did they know?

"Wh-wh-what do you mean?"

"I was working out in the garden when I saw Maggie return home hardly an hour later. Without you," Brenda replied, "So where were you?"

Hardly an hour! Maggie was supposed to be out for a few hours to help keep her cover! Great… well, there was no point in hiding it anymore.

"I uh…I was out on a date…with the Teyrn."

Both her parents' eyes widened in shock.

"_What_!?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Took longer than I expected to finish this chapter, but I got it done. This thing called life plopped right down on top of me. Anyhow, school is out, essays no longer have to be written and I am far less stressed. Life is good now. Hope you like the chapter.**

**Pollyana24: Wet frocks perhaps may be incorporated later. :)**

**Aya-Shoru: Not too much trouble…I should have made her get in more trouble though…**

**Notabarbiegirl: Thank you so much! XD**

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

"Why didn't you _tell _me you were seeing the Teyrn?" Brenda asked incredulously.

"Because…I was…I-I don't know…I didn't want anyone knowing just in case…things didn't go well," Dianna replied, shifting nervously on her feet.

"Dia is dating the _Teyrn_!?" Rosemary exclaimed as she came screeching to a halt in the living, magically appearing from upstairs.

"And because of that," Dianna said tersely, pointing to her sister.

"This is so exciting! Dia finally has a boyfriend!" Rosemary cheered happily as she did a dance.

"SSSSSHHHHH!" Dianna said, spitting everywhere as she threatened to strangle her sister, "You don't know what people around here will do if they hear! They'll do whatever they can to get rid of me so that their own daughters might have a chance. So shut. UP!"

"Your sister is right," Brenda said, "We should keep this quiet as long as we can to avoid any disputes between the neighbors."

"Or the demise of your daughter," Dianna said blandly.

"I doubt they'd go _that_ far," her mother said.

"You never know. Better safe than sorry."

"But never keep something like this from us again, or you'll be grounded," her mother said with a hard look, "I'm tempted to ground you already…but I'll let it slide since it was just the Teyrn."

Dianna dropped her head down, trying to look apologetic, "Okay Mom."

"Are you going to keep this secret then?" Rosemary asked, jumping back a subject, "I mean…I expect that'd be a bit difficult."

"It is considering I have a blabbermouth for a sibling," Dianna retorted, "But…Fergus wants to come here and speak to father about it anyway so…it's not like it's going to remain secret for long anyway. Until then, I want none of you to speak of this!"

Dianna was mostly looking at Rosemary, who pouted upon noticing the glaring look.

"Okay…"

* * *

Dianna knew she should return to the castle the following day to inform Fergus about the fact her family knew about the two of them now, but two trips to the castle in two days didn't sound like a good idea to her. Besides, he was probably too busy to speak with her, and she didn't want to bother him. She debated over what to do all morning before finally deciding to just send him a note, which she was going to have Rosemary deliver it to the guards for her.

"Why me?" she asked when Dianna handed her the letter.

"So no one sees me going up there."

Rosemary rolled her eyes, "You are so paranoid. Ugh, fine! But you owe me."

Once her sister left though, Dianna was starting to question her decision to allow _Rosemary_ to deliver the letter. What would keep Rosemary from spilling she was delivering a letter to the castle, for the Teyrn, from her sister, if any of their neighbor's asked where she was heading? Their neighbors were rather nosey people, and asked everyone of their business. Perhaps she shouldn't have sent the letter then. Maybe she should have waited.

It was nearly a half hour later before Rosemary returned, and Dianna swooped down upon her the moment she stepped in the doorway.

"Did you talk to anyone?"

"The guard at the castle," Rosemary replied, "Telling them you wanted me to deliver a letter to Fergus."

Dianna slapped the palm of her hand against her forehead, "You didn't call him Fergus to their _faces_ did you?"

"No, I said Teyrn, but why would I do that here? Fergus is easier to say than 'the Teyrn' all the time."

"Oh good," Dianna sighed in relief, "And you didn't talk to anyone else?"

"Not about the letter, but I said hi to the neighbor's that greeted me."

"Nothing else?"

"I'm not as big of a blabbermouth anymore!" Rosemary shouted indignantly, "I'm seventeen now, I've grown up."

Dianna rolled her eyes, "You still can't keep your mouth shut when it comes to gossip."

Rosemary huffed loudly as she stormed past her sister, "See if I do anything for you again!"

* * *

Dianna really wasn't expecting to hear from Fergus in a few days, since she was certain he was very busy with all his duties so she was extremely surprised when he arrived at her doorstep later that evening.

The sun was setting, turning the blue sky into pinks and purples, when there was a knock at the door. Dianna, who was sitting sideways in a chair, legs slung over the arm as she read a book, looked over to her mom and sister with a curious look, who had the same expression on their faces. None of them were expecting anyone, not at this time in the evening. Allen got up from his seat and headed to the door, not noticing the confused looks on his family's faces. Dianna turned her attention away from her book and listened carefully to see if she recognized any voices, since she couldn't see the entryway from where she sat. Unfortunately, her father spoke too quietly and she couldn't hear who might have been at the door either. She and the rest of her family didn't have to wait long though before finding out what was going on, Allen entering the living room hardly a minute later, with Fergus in his full plate mail right behind him. Dianna jumped up from her seat, since she was sitting very unladylike, her book sent flying from her hands as she hastily smoothed out her skirt.

"F-Fergus!" she said shrilly, "I-I-I didn't expect you to show up so soon."

"I wasn't expecting for you to tell your parents so soon either," Fergus replied, "But I wanted to speak with them as soon as I could."

Dianna flushed red, "I sort of had no choice but to tell them. I didn't explain it in the letter, but they found out I wasn't with Maggie the whole day."

"It never is wise to attempt to hide things from ones parents," Fergus chuckled, "I've had plenty of my own experience with that one."

She had to agree with that one. Parents _always_ knew.

Fergus turned his attention back to her father, "Is there somewhere we may speak privately?"

Allen motioned for him to follow, and waved his wife to come as well. The three headed down the hall, Fergus flashing Dianna a smile before he disappeared down it. Once he was gone, Dianna sat back down in her chair, letting out a long breath she didn't know she had been holding.

"If you die tomorrow from rabid noble ladies, can I have your stuff?" Rosemary asked.

Dianna shot a glare at her sister, "No."

"Are you even going to step outside tomorrow?"

"Probably not," Dianna replied, slumping in her seat with a groan, "Ugh, so much for making our dating, or courting, whatever word they use, official. I probably won't be able to walk to Maggie's house without neighbors coming up to interrogate me."

"Maybe you're exaggerating how bad it'll be," Rosemary suggested, "Maybe they'll just glare at you but not bother talking to you."

"Either way, it'll suck," Dianna said, "I hate attention."

"If that's the case, why don't you just…not see Fergus anymore?"

Dianna shot straight up in her seat, "Because I like him! Okay? He…"

Rosemary raised an eyebrow in intrigue, "He what?"

"He's worth it," Dianna muttered, burrowing herself into the chair.

Her reply was unintelligible so Rosemary had no idea what she said. She tried getting her to repeat it, but Dianna refused. Rosemary pestered her for another ten minutes or so until Fergus and her parents entered the room again, so she snapped her mouth shut. Dianna got back to her feet, her face steadily turning darker shades of red as Fergus approached her.

"Matters have been settled," Fergus said lowly so only Dianna could hear, now that he stood hardly two paces away from her, "Your father has given me permission to court you. Though he was surprisingly difficult to convince. Most of the other noblemen here would throw their daughters at me, begging for me to court them."

"Well, my father is just protective," Dianna replied, "Wants to make sure I'm taken care of and won't get hurt."

"That is the duty of every father, and I am glad to see he lives up to his calling," Fergus said, "Now I best return to the castle, it is getting late. I shall call for you when I next have some free time available."

Dianna nodded, her mouth having gone dry and unable to form any words. Fergus only made it worse as he took her hand and placed a kiss on her knuckles.

"Until then," Fergus said, "Farewell."

"Bye," Dianna managed to choke out as he headed to the door.

Once Fergus left, Dianna turned to her parents and sister. Rosemary had a big grin on her face while she couldn't read the expression on her parents' faces. They looked pleased, but also concerned, suspicious almost, as if they didn't feel they could trust Fergus completely.

"So…that went well," Dianna said.

Allen shrugged, but didn't say anything. That was him though, the silent type.

"He's a nice young man," her mother said, "I just don't want to see you get hurt though."

"Trust me, if I get hurt, it won't be because of him."

"Rabid noble ladies?" Rosemary asked.

"Exactly."

* * *

The gossip of the Teyrn visiting the Hamilton household spread like wildfire through the city in just one day which then spawned rumors as to _why_. The most popular rumor was he was seeing the eldest Hamilton daughter, which Dianna hated how they were spot on with that one. The second most popular, and the most scandalous, was he had come to "visit" Dianna, in _that_ sense. Needless to say, Dianna was getting many dirty looks from the neighbors when she dared step foot outside. Others consisted of him just checking up on the family, since they had taken residence at the castle for a few weeks while things got in order with their new home, but not many people were spreading that one around. From the popular rumor, Dianna was already hearing the nobles complain, because she wasn't even originally from Highever, not to mention Ferelden, due to her odd accent. Even after living in this different world for over a year, Dianna and her family still retained a lot of their American accent. They were however starting to sound more Ferelden, being immersed in the culture.

After just the first day of the stares and the whispering and the cold shoulders, Dianna decided to hide in her room for the rest of her life. She _hated_ these people they lived amongst. They were just so catty and degrading. If any had the chance to get her out of the picture and put themselves in the limelight, they'd do it in a heartbeat. Except Maggie. Maggie was the only one keeping Dianna sane, and socialized. Maggie's mother, on the other hand, was a completely different story.

"Mother wanted you to come over for dinner this Friday, and for you to invite the Teyrn along as well," Maggie said, flipping to another page in the book she was reading.

Dianna poked her head out from under the covers of her bed, "What? Why? The answer is no anyway because he's busy and…I don't know what his schedule is like."

"Do you really not know why?" Maggie asked incredulously, "She wants me to catch the Teyrn's eye and have him change his mind about you."

Dianna groaned, "Great, not your mom too. Everyone is against me!"

"Personally, I have no desire whatsoever to court the Teyrn," Maggie assured her friend, "Too many responsibilities if I were to become Teyrna."

The word Teyrna made Dianna blanch as she ducked back under the covers, "Oh God, what was I thinking? If he wants to eventually marry me, that means _I_ will become Teyrna. Oh Lordy."

"God? Lordy? What in the name of Andraste are you talking about?"

If Maggie could see under the blankets, she would have seen the very guilty expression on Dianna's face before she replied, "I-Isn't the Maker your God? I…I've just used that terminology rather than Maker."

"Well, no one understands you when you do, and also it's no wonder people think you're not even originally from Ferelden," Maggie commented, "Where are you from anyway?"

"No one here has ever heard of it, so I'm not going to even try explaining."

Maggie shrugged, "Whatever."

She didn't really care, she liked Dianna, she was a good friend and not snooty like the other young noble ladies here. Heck, Maggie might have befriended some of the young noblemen if _they_ weren't just as snooty. Everyone in their district had a rod shoved up their ass.

"So when do you think you'll leave the house again?" Maggie asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Never."

"Never? Then how are you going to see Teyrn Cousland when he comes calling?"

Dianna threw the covers off her, since it was getting too hot anyway, with it being summer now, "I'll turn into a bird and fly to the castle."

Maggie's eyes grew wide, then asked in a hushed voice, "You're not an apostate…are you?"

"I was joking Maggie," Dianna said.

"Oh…right…of course," Maggie muttered.

"To truthfully answer your question…I don't know, I'll just suck it up and see him," Dianna went on to say, "I'm just worried I'll be mobbed and lynched."

"I can be your decoy if you want," Maggie offered.

Dianna shrugged, "I don't know if that'd work…but we could try."

* * *

Dianna and Maggie didn't get the chance to test the decoy plan until a week later, when Dianna received a note from Fergus asking if she would be able to come visit him at the castle the following morning. Since he asked her to arrive in the morning, she got up earlier than usual, and she and Maggie followed through with their plan. Maggie left the Hamilton household after borrowing one of Dianna's cloaks, since it was still chilly in the mornings it made sense to wear one. As Maggie made her way up the road toward the castle, Dianna could already see some people following after her, all young ladies, and all looking rather pissed off. Once they were out of sight, Dianna slipped out, also wearing a cloak, but one of Maggie's unassuming ones, and took a different route to reach the castle. She reached it without incident, and was led inside by a guard, who informed her Fergus would be in his study.

Dianna thought it too early for him to be working in his study, but when she reached it, she found he wasn't working. Instead he looked overwhelmed, distraught, and utterly confused. At least he wasn't in his full plate mail, then she'd think he was expecting a fight or something.

"Are you alright Fergus?" Dianna asked, noting his emotional state, "What's wrong?"

"Dianna…I wasn't expecting you so early," Fergus said, surprised to see her.

"I can go…if you want to be alone."

"No," Fergus replied, crossing the room and pulling her into his arms, "I asked you here because I needed someone to talk to."

Dianna's face began burning up as Fergus hugged her, and after debating what to do for a few moments, returned the hug.

"So what's wrong?" she asked again.

"It's about my brother," he began.

"Is he dead?" Dianna asked, unable to mask the hope in her voice.

"Dianna," Fergus said disapprovingly, pulling back to frown at her.

"Sorry, I'm sorry," she quickly apologized, "Let me rephrase that," she cleared her throat, "What about your brother?"

Fergus let go of Dianna and began pacing, "It's just a rumor, sounds utterly ludicrous, but sometimes rumors are true and…I can't help but worry about him."

"What is this rumor?"

"I'm surprised you haven't heard it yet," Fergus said, "People are saying he had been a host for a demon, and the Grey Wardens had to cast it out of him. I know it has to be a spun tale to entertain the people of Denerim, but…if it were true…would that explain his behavior here? For everything he did?"

Dianna had no clue about demons and possession, so she wasn't sure what to say. If only she had the Thedas world knowledge of her sister Olyvia.

"Is it possible for…people to become possessed?" she asked hesitantly.

"Only mages and corpses," Fergus replied, "Or so I've heard. Oh Maker, does that mean a demon had been haunting my brother's corpse?"

"I'm sure he would still smell foul if he were decomposing," Dianna commented.

"You're right, it was foolish of me to think otherwise."

"No, you were just thinking of the worst case scenario," Dianna said, "Which…a walking decomposing corpse is pretty bad."

Fergus continued to pace, and Dianna wracked her brain for what else she could say. Eventually, she decided to ask, "Do you…want to see him?"

"I'm almost afraid to go see him," Fergus said, "Because if he still believes me to be an enemy, demon or no, it wouldn't change anything. He's still my brother, I still care for him so I can't help but wonder…if there is in fact a part of him still left."

"You know there is only one way to find out."

"Again, not too keen on leaving Highever to see him," Fergus said, "I'd rather him come here to me."

"Would the brother you knew come and apologize for running you through with a sword?"

The fact Fergus had to think about it was already enough of an answer for Dianna. It was a few minutes before he gave his reply.

"Aedan was always cocky, and hated being wrong," Fergus said, "It'd take a lot for him to humble himself and apologize for anything," he was silent for a few more moments before turning back to Dianna and closing the distance between them, taking a hold of her hands in his, "Thank you for coming. Your wisdom was just what I needed."

"I would hardly call it wisdom," Dianna muttered.

Fergus chuckled, "Insight then. Thank you, you've helped ease my mind."

"I'm glad I was able to help," Dianna said, though coming and chatting about _Aedan_ of all people was hardly what she considered courtship material.

Fergus sighed heavily, the weariness on his face starting to disappear, "I need some fresh air. Would you care to go on another ride with me?"

Dianna made a face because she was again wearing a dress, "I'm not too fond of side saddle."

"Then we shall walk," Fergus said, "Do me a bit of good anyway, I've haven't been keeping up on my training as much as I've been keeping up on meals."

Dianna couldn't help but laugh a little at that comment, "Alright, where are we going?"

Fergus held his arm out to her, and she linked hers with his. As they headed out the door, Fergus replied, "When one needs fresh air, what is a better place than the beach?"

* * *

Walking it was about a fifteen minute trip to the beach, and having hit sand, Dianna decided to kick off her shoes and socks. She was a little more stable barefoot, and there was the chance she might decide to venture a short ways into the water later. Fergus also followed suit before they made their way down the beach. With it still being early in the morning, it was rather chilly, especially with the wind, but it didn't bother the two. It'd warm up soon anyway.

"The last time we were both down here, you were rather upset with me," Fergus commented as they passed the cluster of rocks where he had found Dianna sulking the last time.

"Yeah well, that was nearly a month ago," Dianna replied, "We've gotten over the issue."

"Which I am glad," Fergus said, "I'd hate knowing you hated me."

"I didn't _hate_ you, I just…thought you were a bit of a jerk."

"Oh, that makes it all better then," Fergus laughed.

"At least things are better now," Dianna said, "Between us."

Fergus nodded in agreement. Even if their relationship hadn't blossomed as it did, he still would have wanted the air cleared between them. The idea of someone hating him, or holding a grudge against him, made him uneasy. That was the reasoning for Howe's betrayal after all, he held resentment towards his father.

The two ventured closer to the water, allowing the breaking surf wash over their feet. Dianna didn't bother lifting her skirt to avoid the water, it wouldn't hurt it, so the first two inches got soaked.

"I got an interesting request last week," Dianna said out of the blue quite a few minutes later, "My friend Maggie, her mother wanted me to invite you over for dinner and their house."

"That is an interesting request," Fergus said, "I don't typically eat at peoples' homes. Any particular reason?"

"Well…Maggie's mom is desperate to find a suitor for her daughter and Maggie told me her mother was hoping she'd catch your eye," Dianna replied, "I said no anyway, but it doesn't matter since the day has come and gone."

Fergus stopped and turned Dianna to face him, "Dianna, no one else is going to catch my attention."

"I wasn't worried about tha—,"

"I hope I don't hurt your feelings by saying this, but I feel I should explain. I do like you Dianna, but it's hard enough for me to try getting over Oriana as it is."

Dianna nodded, "I know, and I understand. Really I do."

Fergus tucked a stray lock of hair that had been blown out from her braid back behind her ear, "I do believe this relationship has potential, I just…I don't know how long I'll need."

"I'm not going to rush you Fergus," Dianna said, "You can take all the time you need. Let's just hope jealous noblewomen don't take matters in their own hands because they've been giving me dirty looks already."

That got a chuckle from Fergus, "I think you'll be fine. And thank you…for being so understanding. How did I get so lucky?"

Dianna blushed and ducked her head, turning to face forward again and resumed walking. Fergus remained at her side, keeping up with her as she walked.

"So the nobles have been giving you dirty looks?" he asked.

"Is it really that surprising?" Dianna asked in reply, "They're going to miss out on you again, and to someone not even from Highever."

"Where are you from anyway?" Fergus asked, and Dianna's stomach turned to lead. She had been dreading and avoiding this question and she inadvertently set herself up, "Your accent is one I've never heard before."

Dianna wrung her hands together, wondering how to answer. Perhaps she should just tell him part of the truth. He'd have no idea what she was talking about, but at least she wouldn't have to lie to him forever.

"I originally came from a place called…America," Dianna replied, and seeing the utterly confused look on Fergus's face, continued, "Some freak accident brought my family here. We have no idea how it happened, but we're here, and we made the most of it. Ferelden is our home now."

"I've never heard of such a place."

"I'd be surprised if you did," Dianna said, "But it doesn't matter…does it?"

"It doesn't," Fergus said, "I was simply curious."

Dianna was relieved to hear that. She wouldn't want her origins to cause a rift between them.

* * *

After enjoying the sea air for over an hour, the two returned to the castle where Fergus invited Dianna to stay until lunch so that she may join him. She looked down at the soaked hem of her skirt before back to Fergus.

"It'll just be the two of us, you don't have to worry about what you're wearing."

"Alright then…I'll stay."

So she read in the library while Fergus attended to his duties before lunchtime came around, and Fergus escorted her to a little sitting area in the garden that overlooked the city. Dianna was surprised by the amount of food brought them for just a lunch. She was overstuffed by the end of the meal, topped with a handful of sweets.

"Well…it's best I return home," Dianna said, looking out over the city, "Let's hope I make it there in one piece."

"Would you like me to escort you home?" Fergus asked.

Dianna debated over this for a few moments before giving her reply, "Yes, I would. Should be safer with you there."

So the two made their way back into the city, earning even _more_ stares as they entered Dianna's neighborhood. At least everyone was keeping their distance.

"So when will I see you again?" Dianna asked once they reached her doorstep.

"That is uncertain," Fergus replied, "I've been busier of late, but I shall send for you again once I have an opening."

Dianna nodded, and Fergus took her hand, "So until then."

As usual, he kissed her hand before turning and heading up the street. With a quick look around, Dianna saw neighbors poking their heads out of windows and some even coming outside. Whirling around she rushed inside and returned to her bedroom to hide.

* * *

With things going well with their relationship, Dianna decided it was about time she write her sister again, updating her that she and Fergus actually had a relationship now. She was sure Olyvia would be happy for her, but she was certain she'd be more shocked that Dianna mustered the courage to tell Fergus she liked him.

Two more weeks went by, and Dianna saw Fergus quite a few more times, visiting the castle every other day or every two days. Fergus would manage to put aside a few hours of free time, where he and Dianna would take walks or converse over meals. There really wasn't more time for anything more extravagant. The days she stayed home was just that, she stayed home, though she did sneak out through a back window in order to go over to Maggie's house to spend time there a few times.

When Fergus would send for Dianna, it usually came in the form of a letter, so she was pleasantly surprised when he showed up on her doorstep one afternoon.

"What brings you here?" Dianna asked as she let him in.

"To see you, what else?"

"Usually I just get a letter, so what's going on?"

Fergus took in a deep breath before replying, "I am expecting some guests this Saturday evening, and I wanted to…invite you to join us."

Dianna looked at him suspiciously, "What sort of guests?"

"Some Arl's and Banns who wish to speak to me about my brother," Fergus replied, "I'm assuming they're going to try to convince me to declare civil war against him again. Ferelden is still in ruin and he's not doing anything to make it better, but I've already rescinded my claim against him. It wouldn't be a good idea to bring it up again."

"And…just what would it help for me to be there?" Dianna asked.

"We won't be talking business at the dinner," Fergus said, "And I thought it'd be nice to have you there. Besides, they've all expressed interest in the woman I'm courting and wish to meet you."

Dianna became very nervous at the prospect of meeting all these Arl's and Bann's Fergus was talking about because one: she was shy, two: she wasn't sure she knew the correct mannerisms when meeting and dining with these people. As she was thinking over her reply, a certain Arl's name popped into her head, and she couldn't help but glare.

"Is Arl Eamon going to be there?" she asked bitterly.

Fergus's expression was enough of an answer, but he still replied, "Yes."

"Then no, I'm not going," Dianna answered bluntly, turning around and heading toward the staircase to return to her room.

"Dianna!" Fergus called out to her, grabbing her hand to keep her from leaving, "It'll just be one evening. You don't even have to talk to him."

"Oh, but I'm sure he'll talk to me, and have plenty of horrible things to say about my sister," Dianna hissed.

Fergus's face crumpled, and Dianna began feeling bad, seeing that hurt look, "I was hoping you'd be able to put that aside for just a few hours. It's been a while since we've had time to properly see each other."

Dianna remained silent, juggling her options in her head. If she did go, and Eamon pissed her off, she wasn't sure if she'd be able to contain herself and _not_ punch him in the face.

"And just remember, he's not the only one who's going to be there," Fergus added, "There will be many others who, may I remind you, are interested in meeting you."

Dianna groaned. Well she couldn't disappoint these other men now could she? Besides, it'd probably look bad for Fergus if she didn't show.

"But…if you are adamant on not going, I understand," Fergus continued, seeing she still hadn't said anything, and let go of her hand, "I shall take my leave then."

"Wait," Dianna said as Fergus started to turn, making him stop and turn back to face her, "I'll go. As long as Eamon doesn't talk to me."

"I'm sure he'll at least say hello."

"Then nothing more than that," Dianna said, "Honestly, I can't stand him, especially when he's slandering my sister."

"I doubt it'll be brought up, not at supper," Fergus said, then grabbing her hand he lifted it to his lips and gave it a gentle kiss, "I shall see you Saturday afternoon then."

"Afternoon?"

"You want to be there before the guests arrive don't you?"

"I…guess? And I assume I'll have to wear some fancy attire?"

Fergus nodded, "It is a dinner with Arls and Banns after all."

Lovely, Dianna was going to have to scour for a dress to wear. She didn't have many fancy ones now, just nice ones and plain ones.

"Alright…Saturday afternoon it is then."

With another nod, Fergus said his goodbye and left. Dianna strummed her fingers together as she thought of what to do. Looked like she and Maggie would be going shopping.

* * *

With Maggie's help, Dianna was able to find a suitable dress, which Dianna thought was a little too fancy and froofy for her tastes, so when she got home she enlisted her mother's help to take off some of the excess and unnecessary lace. After that was done, she deemed it wearable, since she would feel less like a fruitcake in it now. The one thing she couldn't get away with, was foregoing the corset. _That_ was going to suck. Otherwise she was okay with it. It was a beautiful golden color with small red silk ribbons around the arms at the elbow and wrists, and also down the center of body of the gown, where she decided to leave the off-white lace there. That lace didn't look bad, it was around the collar and the sleeves that made it a monstrosity.

Saturday came sooner than Dianna expected, and she was wishing it hadn't because she was really not looking forward to being in Eamon's company again. The moment she woke up in the morning she was dreading the day, and had a gut feeling it wouldn't turn out well either.

Once up, she got herself ready, first working on her hair to have it ready before putting on the dress. Her hair didn't take too long, and Dianna groaned as her mother took the dress from her closet.

"Can we not make the corset too tight?" Dianna asked as the corset was put on first.

"Of course, I know what happens to your body with these things," Brenda replied as she pulled the corset ties snug, "You're thin enough as it is, I doubt anyone would be able to tell the difference."

"Could we pull it tight just to see what she looks like?" Rosemary asked, and added with a grin, "And torture her a little."

Dianna glared at her little sister, "You know I'll get you back right?"

"It might be worth it."

"No Rosemary, we're not going to do that," Brenda replied, "You can still breathe?"

Dianna took in as deep of a breath as she could, which wasn't too deep, but considerably more than possible if the corset were used in the proper manner.

"Why do I even have to wear it?" Dianna asked, "If I'm skinny enough?"

"It'll smooth out any bumps," Brenda replied, "And though you may be thin, you still have bumps in places."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, you really think I'm fat."

"I do not!" her mother argued.

Dianna sighed, "Let's just get the dress on and this over with."

By the time she was all set to go, it was already noon, and Dianna was preparing for her trek to the castle when there was a knock at the door. Dianna expected it to be Maggie, to be her decoy again, so she answered, but instead it was Fergus again.

"Oh…hello Fergus," Dianna said, "I wasn't expecting you to show up, I was about to head to the castle."

"Then it is a good thing I arrived when I did," Fergus said, and Dianna looked around his shoulders to see a carriage parked on the road, "I didn't want to make you walk all that way, especially dressed as you are."

Dianna shrugged, "I could care less what happens to this dress, I probably won't wear it often."

"That's a shame, I think you look beautiful," Fergus complimented.

"Th-thanks," Dianna stammered, her face turning red.

"So are you ready?"

"No…maybe?"

Fergus smiled, "I'll give you a few minutes."

"You're welcome to come in while I take those few minutes," Dianna offered, stepping back to allow him room.

Fergus stepped inside and swung the door shut behind him and just waited in the entryway while Dianna paced around the room for a few moments before sitting down on the couch.

"You don't appear eager to go," Fergus said, sounding crestfallen.

"I'm…nervous," Dianna lied, since she wasn't eager at all, "Meeting new people has always made me nervous."

And seeing people she didn't like, _hated_ even, made her angry. And she couldn't be a pleasant person when she was angry.

After a few minutes, she took a deep breath and stood up, "I'm ready now."

"Bye! Have fun!" Rosemary chirped from the kitchen, briefly poking her head out the entryway and waving to her.

Dianna shot her the 'you-know-I-won't' look before heading out the door with Fergus, her stomach tying itself into even more knots.

* * *

Not long after Dianna and Fergus arrived at the castle his guests started to arrive, and Fergus asked if she come and greet the guests with him, which she agreed to. A man named Bann Loren was the first to arrive, and was accompanied by his son, both whom Fergus seemed to know fairly well. It was after they headed to their guest rooms that Fergus explained to her Bann Loren's wife was friends with his mother so they visited often, and that one visit fatefully coincided with the day Howe's men attacked. Over the next few hours more began to show, none of whom Dianna even recognized. Then the one face she did recognized showed, and Dianna had to fight with herself to not glare, though she was sure she was failing. Eamon didn't arrive alone though, another man, far younger than he with auburn hair and trimmed beard walked at his side.

"It is good to see you again Arl Eamon," Fergus said as he shook his hand first.

"Likewise," Eamon said plainly, before casting a glance at Dianna, who shot a quick glare at him before forcing it back again.

"And Teagan, it's good to see you old friend," Fergus greeted the other made more jovially, grasping his hand with both of his as he shook it, "It feels like it's been ages since we last spoke."

"That's because it was before the Blight," Teagan replied with a small smile, "I didn't manage to catch you in Denerim at the last Landsmeet."

"Well that wouldn't have been a good time to catch me anyway," Fergus said solemnly.

This Teagan then turned his attention to Dianna, "And who is this lovely lady?"

Dianna's cheeks turned bright red at Teagan's words. Did _everybody_ have to talk like that? He wasn't the first visitor her addressed her as such. I mean, hello she was dating the Teyrn, you don't say that sort of stuff about someone else's girl.

"This is Lady Dianna Hamilton," Fergus introduced, and Dianna took that as her cue to do a little curtsy and offer her hand, as she had been instructed to by Fergus. She had admitted to him earlier she had no clue how to greet these people so he gave her a few tips, "She is the lady whom I'm seeing."

"A pleasure to meet you," Teagan said, bowing and taking her hand which he shook gently.

When he stood up, he looked at Dianna curiously, making her cheeks start burning again. Why was he looking at her like that.

"Have we met before?" Teagan asked, "You look familiar."

"No we haven't," Dianna replied.

Teagan's brow furrowed even more, "I would have sworn we had," then a few seconds later his expression changed, as if the puzzle pieces in his head finally fit together, "Hamilton! You're Olyvia's sister aren't you?"

Now Dianna was wary of this guy. How did he know Olyvia?

"And just…how do you know my sister?" she voiced her curiosity.

"We met during the Blight, when she and the Grey Wardens came to Redcliffe," Teagan said, and his face fell, "Hard to forget those involved in such a tragedy."

And now she was even more confused. Eamon, however, seemed to know what he was talking about.

"This is no time to speak of such things Teagan," Eamon scolded, "Now let us go to our rooms and rest from our trip."

Eamon didn't wait to see if Teagan would follow before heading for the door, so Teagan said a quick goodbye and followed after Eamon. Dianna looked up at Fergus with a confused look, and he laughed.

"Eamon and Teagan are brothers," Fergus said, "If you were wondering why they acted like they did to each other. Teagan is the Bann of Rainesfere, a town in the Redcliffe area."

"Oh…well Teagan seems much nicer than Eamon," Dianna said, "And much younger."

"The difference in their age is quite a bit yes," Fergus said, "Teagan isn't too much older than myself, which probably attributed to our friendship."

"And uh…do you know what he was talking about, with the tragedy thing?"

"I assume he meant Isolde's death," Fergus replied, "Eamon's wife. I don't know how it happened, all I do know is she perished. Eamon has taken it hard, he loved her very much."

"Oh…," Dianna muttered. She had no idea he had lost his wife. Still, even knowing his sob story, she held no compassion for the man. As far as she knew, he still had it out for her sister.

"Do you think Teagan was going to say anything about that?" Dianna asked.

"It sure sounded like it," Fergus said, "And I have to admit, I'm a little curious myself, but that is a discussion for another day."

"Well…I'd like to know myself," Dianna said, "See if it sheds any light on why Eamon hates my sister so much."

Fergus said nothing for a few moments, staring at the wall ahead of him, before turning back to Dianna, "You don't think she had anything to do with Isolde's death do you?"

"My sister wouldn't kill anyone!" Dianna whispered sharply, "Well…unless their name is Aedan, or in self-defense."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to offend."

"You didn't, sorry for sounding angry," Dianna apologized, "Just stating a fact."

"Then I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the truth is."

Within the next two hours, all of Fergus's expected guests arrived and there was still time before supper was ready so Fergus went to his study to return to paperwork, and Dianna went to the library to find something to read to pass the time. She headed into the far back to search for a book when she found she wasn't alone. Also taking advantage of the Cousland's library, or perhaps just hiding from his brother since he didn't look to be perusing the literature, was Bann Teagan.


	8. Chapter 8

**Finally got this chapter done! I sent off my laptop to be fixed (I will have a spacebar again! Yay!) so I had to borrow other peoples computers in order to get this written. But I will have my laptop back soon. With a spacebar! YAY!**

**Melysande: Yes, Teagan can be quite the charmer…**

**Aya-Shoru: Suffer! Just wait until you read this chapter.**

**Guest: Thanks! :)**

**Pollyanna24: That will be somewhat explained this chapter. And who can resist some Teagan? Everyone loves Teagan.**

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

Dianna wasn't sure whether to bother Teagan or just ignore him and find herself a book. She was dying to know what happened at Redcliffe, this tragedy he had talked about, but she didn't want to pester him. So she decided to just look at books, and if he talked to her, perhaps they'd end up discussing that particular incident.

"Hello again Lady Dianna," she heard him say as she walked past to get to the section of bookshelf she wanted to look through.

"Hello Bann Teagan," she replied, "And if you could please just call me Dianna."

"If you wish," he replied, "I take by your presence all expected guests have arrived."

Dianna nodded, "Yes, I get to relax for now. Fergus unfortunately is back to work until supper in an hour."

"He has a lot to fix," Teagan said, "With what Howe did while he was in power. From what I've seen, he's done remarkably well, considering the circumstances."

That Dianna had to agree with. Though he had been busy, he'd been able to handle it, while still grieving the loss of his family, and dealing with the problems Aedan caused.

"He seems happy though," Teagan added after a pause, "Last I saw and spoke with his Lordship was at the coronation and he was…a wreck to say the least. I'm glad to see he's found happiness with you."

Dianna's cheeks flushed red at the compliment, "O-oh…um…thanks?"

Teagan smiled, "I can't see how I couldn't place you earlier, you share many qualities with your sister. Especially vocabulary."

"You knew her well?" Dianna asked, her inner self doing a little victory dance for having gotten onto the subject of her sister. Perhaps Teagan would elaborate on the tale he started earlier.

"I wouldn't say well, but she wasn't someone easily forgotten," Teagan said, "She was…very different than everyone else I've encountered. At any rate, we probably only were acquainted for a total of a few weeks, with the Grey Warden's stays at Redcliffe so I only knew a little about her."

Dianna strummed her fingers, wondering if she dare ask the question floating in her mind before making a decision, "So just what happened at Redcliffe that she was involved in. You called it a tragedy."

Teagan's countenance grew solemn, "Eamon doesn't believe it is my place to share this story, but he wasn't there, he didn't have to witness such a horror," he paused for a moment before continuing, "A demon had taken possession of Eamon's son, and when the Wardens had to make a decision of how to be rid of it, Eamon's wife, Isolde, volunteered her life so the blood mage could send another into the fade to fight the demon. So Isolde died, and Eamon blames the Wardens and all their companions for her demise."

"That doesn't sound like my sister," Dianna said, "To agree to such a thing."

"She didn't," Teagan said, "Only Aedan and Solona were in agreement to using blood magic and sacrificing Isolde. Your sister insisted on another option, fought against them even, but Aedan and Solona wouldn't listen. And no matter how many times Eamon hears the story, he will never believe it."

"So…Arl Eamon hates my sister for trying to save his wife?"

"He doesn't believe that is the case," Teagan replied.

Now Dianna was getting angry. Eamon was more of an ass than she thought.

"I can't believe this," Dianna growled, "After all she did for him and he still—ugh!"

"I apologize if I upset you," Teagan said.

Dianna took in a deep breath to calm her emotions, "No, I'm fine. Everything's fine."

That was a lie, but she had to keep her head. She was already a ticking time bomb, ready to explode with the slightest nudge. And she still had supper to get through. Hopefully nothing would happen, or else it would prove to be an interesting evening.

* * *

A little over an hour later the guests were called for supper, convening in the large dining hall. Fergus of course sat at the head of the table, with Dianna on his right. The long table was nearly full with the amount of guests they had. The Arls or Banns who had wives had brought them along, so they had quite the group. And Dianna could be happy with the seating arrangements, since she wasn't sitting next to or across from Eamon.

The talk at the table was mostly politics, and Dianna couldn't help but get a bit bored with it. Anytime the other nobles tried discussing Aedan however, Fergus would quickly get the conversation diverted elsewhere. Though they were here to discuss his Highness, Fergus didn't want that to be the dinner conversation. However, the others weren't getting the hint.

"News from the capital says his highness seems to have his mind once more," one of the Bann's wife stated.

"May have his mind, but he ignores our petitions for aide," the one Dianna remembered being Arl Wulff said gruffly, "He may be king, but he acts like a child, thinking he can just laze about all day."

"It is not wise to speak of the king in such a way," the one woman who Dianna remembered, Bann Alfstanna, chided.

Then Eamon spoke, making Dianna clench her jaw in irritation, "It would not have turned out this way if you cast your votes differently at the Landsmeet."

"And place yet another with common blood on the throne?" another Bann who Dianna couldn't remember piped up, "We were cursed for having Anora Queen."

"The fact she had no heir doesn't mean it was a curse," Bann Alfstanna sighed.

"I'm sure it would have only happened again," the Bann went on, "With our luck."

Dianna took another bite of her food, to keep herself quiet. These people didn't need to know she was still in contact with her sister, and enough to know she was pregnant with Alistair's child. And she didn't know how Anora was considered having common blood because from what she heard, Anora was a Teyrn's daughter. She was thoroughly confused.

"Then perhaps—," Eamon began before cutting off abruptly.

"Perhaps what Arl Eamon?" Fergus asked, finally joining into the conversation.

Eamon cast a cautious glance at Dianna, who kept up with her glare at him.

"It is nothing," Eamon replied, "Nothing for conversation over supper."

"Oh but I insist," Fergus said, starting to sound irritated himself, "You've gotten us all curious as to what you have to say."

"Indeed," Arl Wulff added, "It sounded like you had some sort of suggestion."

Dianna knew what he would suggest, and she would throw her knife at him if he said it. She wouldn't stand for him offering up a plan to off her sister to these people.

"I was just going to say," Eamon began, "If we ever managed to find or get in contact with Alistair, convince him that it would be best if he pursue a relationship with a noblewoman."

Unable to help herself, Dianna slammed her fists down onto the table, making everyone near her jump, "You mean to suggest that Alistair divorce my sister!"

"They are married?" Bann Alfstanna asked in surprise.

"Wait, sister?" Arl Wulff piped up in his own confusion.

"Lady Dianna is certainly Olyvia Hamilton's sister," Teagan answered.

"Doesn't that make her a noble then?" Wulff asked, looking at Eamon.

"She certainly didn't act like a noblewoman," Eamon replied, "As uncivilized as she was. And she wouldn't even know where to begin with running a country. Alistair would need someone who knew what they were doing at his side."

Dianna could feel her temper rising, her hand twitching to grab the knife next to her plate. Eamon was so asking for it to be embedded into his neck.

"You are not going to pull those two apart, that much I can assure you," Dianna said tersely, "So you can forget about trying to put Alistair on the throne."

"Then who will replace his Majesty?" the unknown Bann from earlier asked, "He has to be replaced."

"We aren't about to start another civil war now without a good enough reason or someone to take the crown," Fergus said, "We'll only end up tearing Ferelden apart, leaving us vulnerable to outside attacks."

"The Theirin bloodline should remain on the throne," Eamon said, and everyone else nodded in agreement, "But that woman…she is not suitable for the role of Queen."

Dianna had had enough, she just wanted out of there and be as far away from Eamon as she could. She stood up with a violent shove at the table, causing her to send her chair toppling over backward and without another word stormed out the door. It was hardly a minute later as she made her way toward the front gates that she found herself being pulled to a stop.

"Dianna—," Fergus began once he turned her around to face him.

"Don't even start trying to defend him Fergus," Dianna interrupted, "I can't stand being around him, so I am not going to stay. Nothing you say will convince me otherwise."

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry," Fergus said, "I didn't think matters would get so out of hand."

"Well, you should have expected that with Eamon and I in the same room."

"Perhaps," Fergus muttered, "But Dianna…please don't leave now. It's gotten late and I don't want you to walk home."

"I'm sorry Fergus," Dianna said, pulling her arm from his grip, "But I need to go. And as long as _he's_ here, don't bother asking me to come and see you. I won't come. So only call for me once he's gone."

"Dianna," Fergus said, his face crumpling in sorrow.

"Goodnight Fergus," she said, "I'll…see you later."

Turning around, she hurried on her way, reaching the front gates a minute or so later. She didn't even begin to wind down until she was nearly into town, but even then she was on edge, starting to think perhaps leaving when she did, without an escort was a bad idea. It was dark already, and there were always shady people out and about at night, no matter the neighborhood. She was certain there were more who prowled the ritzy neighborhoods for the foolish people who wander out at this time. Such as herself.

"Maybe you should have just stayed in the library until supper was over Dianna," she muttered to herself, "No…I needed to get away from Eamon. That ass. I'm so pissed at him I could strangle him myself! No…no, breathe Dianna…we don't need you murdering people…yet. If he gives me any more reason to do so though…I might just do it."

She had just headed into her own neighborhood, muttering to herself in an attempt to keep her nerves calm, when an arm suddenly wrapped around her face. The arm covered her mouth so her screams couldn't be heard, and she was suddenly yanked backwards, losing her footing and making it that much easier for her attacker to drag her from the middle of the street over into an alley. Seeing whoever had her wasn't about to let her go easily, Dianna sunk her teeth into the horribly rank and disgusting tasting arm. Whoever it was, a man, judging from the scream of pain, hadn't had a proper bath in ages. No matter how foul it tasted, she stayed latched onto him like a vicious dog when he tried pulling his arm away. He still had her around the waist with the other arm, so it wasn't like she could escape if she let him have his arm back.

"Oy, what's the matter wit ya?" she heard someone else ask, also male. That wasn't a good sign.

"The bitch is biting me!"

The man finally turned around with her, and she saw three other men in the alley. She knew very well what was on their minds, but she wasn't about to let it happen.

One stepped forward and backhanded her across the left side of her head, making lights and stars go off in her head. Her bite remained strong though, and the jarring of the hit also hurt the man.

"Get her off! Get her off!" the man cried, "_Before_ you hit her."

"Smother her, that should do it," another suggested.

And so another hand was pressed against her face, pinching her nostrils shut. She decided she had stayed attached long enough. Letting go she took a breath before kicking a heel up into the man's crotch. He let go of her completely to double over in pain, and Dianna punched the man who tried smothering her in the jaw before whirling around to run away. She only managed to jump over the first guy before she was tackled to the ground.

"We've got ourselves a feisty one boys," the one who had her pinned said, "Oh we'll have so much fun with this one."

"Not a chance!" Dianna shouted as she flipped over sideways onto her back.

The guy's hold loosened from the impact, so Dianna elbowed him hard in the sternum before rolling off and trying to take off again. This time someone grabbed her by her hair, yanking her back and slamming her back down onto the ground. Again stars went off in her vision, things starting to double for a few seconds before she got her bearings, but by then, guy number two was on top of her.

"Such a pretty thing," he said lasciviously, practically drooling on her, "But must be pretty stupid, being out at this time of night."

Yes it was stupid, but she had acted rashly, wanting to get away from Eamon. Right now…quite honestly, she'd rather be sitting next to Eamon at the dinner table. Who in their right mind would choose rape over suffering through the presence of an ignorant bastard?

The other two guys came over and held down her arms, since number one was still busy crying on the ground, letting the man on top of her have his way. She squirmed as much as she could, but she couldn't weasel her way out of their strong grip, or the man's weight. She nearly gagged from his horrid breath when he bent his head down, going in to kiss her, but she managed to keep her supper down, and took the opportunity to headbutt him. Hard. More stars, but the guy was seeing them as well at least. She twisted around, trying to get loose, but that only ended up spraining her right wrist when one of the other goons twisted her hand in the other direction. The man on top of her slapped her across the face, so hard she could taste blood in her mouth. Tears stung her eyes as she realized she probably wouldn't be able to get out of this.

'God, Maker, or whoever, just give me the strength to get out of this!' Dianna pleaded in her mind.

Taking in a deep breath, she thought momentarily of what she could do. Her hands were pinned, and someone was on top of her, pinning down her legs. She couldn't do anything. Wait a second…her hands, as well as the men's who were holding her, were extremely sweaty already. Her hands could slip right out so easily. So yanking her hands down, instead of just twisting around, they slipped out of the men's grips, and she shoved the man on top of her backwards until he landed on his back off to the side of her, and she had to do a somersault to get a quick escape before she was scrambling to the nearest possible weapon. A crate. She picked it up, it was a little heavier than she expected, but she was able to whirl it around and hit the two goons both across the head, making the crate shatter and the two to drop. Picking up the largest piece of wood from the broken crate, which was nearly two feet long, she held it up as guy number two approached her. Swinging as hard as she could, she hit him across the head as well, sending a spray of blood from his mouth, and he too dropped to the ground. She was frozen for a few seconds as she stared at the unconscious men, before noticing how her hands were shaking and how labored and shaken her breath was. She looked over at man number one, who was starting to get his bearings and was now onto his knees. Dianna didn't waste another second, turned around, and ran. She didn't look behind her the entire way home, afraid she'd see him or someone else chasing after her. She just wanted to be home, safe and sound.

Reaching her home, she pounded on the front door, since her parents had locked it, until it was opened and Dianna collapsed onto the floor as she kicked the door shut behind her. Her mother, who had opened the door, let out a scream.

"What happened?" she asked hysterically after a few moments, having to take in her daughter's appearance.

"I just…want to…take a bath," Dianna said between heavy breaths and tears, "And go to bed."

* * *

Dianna explained to her mother what happened as she was waiting for the water to heat up for her bath. To say she was horrified, and pissed off was an understatement. Her father was there to hear the story as well, was equally as miffed, and went out to find the men. Dianna was pretty sure dead bodies would be found later.

After her bath, she crawled into her bed, loving the softness and warmth of them as she did so. Nothing had ever felt so good as her blankets and mattress did then. She didn't sleep well however, having nightmares of the experience. So she slept in until late in the morning before wandering away from her room, though that proved to be a challenge since her muscles were just so sore and stiff. When she went to brush her hair, her own appearance frightened her. Her face was black and blue, swollen, and her bottom lip was split. Looking at her right wrist, she found it too was swollen and bruised. Needless to say, she was not a pretty sight.

Rosemary kept her company in the living room while both her parents were out and about. They were busy with the aftermath of Dianna's attack, apparently her dad didn't manage to find them that night and they were eager to get them off the street. When there was a knock at the door, Rosemary hopped up to answer it. Dianna expected it to be Maggie, since she usually came over after lunch to visit, but she recognized the baritone voice at the doorway when he was speaking to Rosemary. Fergus. Did she really want Fergus seeing her like this? Rosemary seemed to have read her mind, poking her head back around the door to ask, "Shall I let him pass?"

Dianna thought for a few seconds before nodding. Why bother avoiding it, Fergus would only think she was angry at him if she sent him away, and he'd only be more persistent. Might as well get it done and over with.

Fergus entered the living room, and he didn't notice right away, even when Dianna stood up, having to come a little closer before he came to an abrupt stop, and then after a pause raced over to Dianna.

"Maker's breath, what happened!" Fergus exclaimed, cupping Dianna's face gently to take a look at the damage, "It looks like you got into a brawl."

"Yeah, that's pretty much what happened," Dianna said, wincing slightly as Fergus's fingers glided over the bruise on her right cheekbone.

"But what _really_ happened?" Fergus asked.

"A group of men tried raping me last night."

Fergus sighed heavily, "I shouldn't have let you go alone last night. This…this is all my fault."

"This is hardly your fault," Dianna argued.

"I should have gone with you," Fergus continued, as if he hadn't heard her, "Or sent…someone, anyone, with you. I _knew_ better than to let you go alone, yet I did because you are…so stubborn! You would have insisted on going alone."

Dianna looked at Fergus indignantly, "Excuse me? Are you now blaming me?"

"N-n-no," Fergus stammered.

"Just so you know, I would have accepted you or someone else walking me home," Dianna said poking Fergus hard in the chest, "I'm not stupid."

"I know you're not, I just…," he sighed again, "I feel I keep screwing up. I haven't been doing very well of keeping you safe."

"I'm fine though," Dianna said, "That's all that matters."

Dianna then found herself being crushed against Fergus's chest, and he kissed her on the forehead, "And thank the Maker for that. If I had lost you now it would…"

"Suck," Dianna completed for him when he didn't say anything for a few moments, "On epic proportions."

Fergus couldn't help but chuckle a little, "I was going to say break me, but suck works too."

He kissed her forehead again, pulled back to look at her, and to Dianna it looked like he was about to go in for a real kiss, but he stopped, averted his gaze and reeled back a few inches. She wouldn't have minded a kiss now, and he certainly didn't have any qualms over kissing her that one time in her guest room, so what this all about? What had changed?

"So I assume you came here about or for something else before my colorful face distracted you," Dianna said to change subjects.

"Right, yes," Fergus said, distancing himself more from Dianna, "Well, I did mostly just want to see you made it home safe, which wasn't the case, but I thought I'd come and tell you the rest of supper went horribly, dessert was okay, and Eamon wants to speak with you."

"Come…come again?" Dianna asked, since he hurried through that last part she wasn't sure if she did hear him correctly.

Fergus took a deep breath, "Eamon…wants to speak…with you?"

"Why on e—Why would he want to talk to me? And why would I want to talk to him?"

"It pertains to your sister," Fergus muttered.

"No."

"I knew that'd be the answer, and I told him as much, but he still asked that I ask you."

"Do you know _why_?"

"Something about getting in contact with your sister, so she knows all that's going on and try convincing her and Alistair to come back to Ferelden," Fergus replied.

"She already knows _very well_ what is going on," Dianna said, "You can tell Eamon that. Besides, he's still hell-bent on pulling those two apart, even though my sister is now a noble. Not to mention they'll be killed if they return here. _And_ she and Alistair don't care. Tell him that, then tell me what the look on his face was."

A troubled look came over Fergus's face, "Do they really not care what happens to their home country?"

"Alistair's home country, remember?"

"Still, do they really not care?"

"Alistair doesn't want to be king!" Dianna exclaimed, "You haven't heard that? According to Olyvia, he'd rather boil himself alive than be king."

"I thought he wanted it."

"Nooooo, Eamon coerced him into agreeing to…compete for the crown, I guess would be the term," Dianna explained. She was glad she had listened to Olyvia during her rants about Eamon, and she could now understand perfectly why she needed to rant in the first place, "And now he wants _me_ to do the dirty work, but I'm not going to. May my sister and Alistair forever live in peace and happiness, wherever that may be."

"I'm sorry…I didn't know," Fergus apologized.

"It's okay, now you do," Dianna said.

"I'll let Eamon know…that you don't intend to speak with him or help him with anything," Fergus said, "And that it'll be amongst our allies that we'll have to consider different options of who could possibly take the throne."

"Don't let Eamon have it either."

"Just because you don't like him as a person doesn't mean he's not a good ruler," Fergus said, "He'd actually do a good job."

Dianna grumbled under her breath. She still wouldn't like it if Eamon became king, but he probably would be better than Aedan.

"I should probably return to the castle," Fergus said after a few moments of silence, "Do you want to come with me so Elliot can tend to your injuries?"

"Um…no, I'll be fine," Dianna replied, "If I'm still banged up by the next time I visit, which will be after Eamon is gone, I'll have him check me over then."

"You're sure?"

Dianna nodded, "Positive."

"Very well. Stay safe…please."

"I will," Dianna promised.

Instead of the usual kiss on her hand as a goodbye, Fergus placed yet another one on her forehead, running his fingers through her hair as he brushed it back over her ear, before taking his leave.

"He really likes you," Rosemary said.

Dianna looked over at her sister, who was sitting in the chair closest to the door, "You were sitting there the whole time?"

Rosemary nodded, a grin on her face, "And you guys are so cute!"

Dianna rolled her eyes, "Ugh."

* * *

It took a little over a week for Dianna's bruises to start fading, which coincidentally was around the same amount of time the nobility stayed. Fergus would send her updates on how matters were going, and by the time they left, little progress had been made. They were all at each other's throats more than working together. Not all had left though, Teagan decided to stay a little longer so he could catch up with his friend. The instant the rest were all gone though, Fergus paid a visit to Dianna, seeing how she was doing and inviting her to come visit the following day. The summer heat was peaking, and he thought another trip to the beach would be perfect. She agreed of course, and with the warning, Dianna dressed in a tunic and breeches instead of a dress, this way she'd be more comfortable and wouldn't get so waterlogged, and again had her hair pulled back into a braid to keep it from getting knotted up from the strong winds. She headed up to the castle on her own in the late morning, since daylight hours were safer, not completely safe, but considerably safer, meeting Fergus in the stables, where they had agreed to meet up.

"Horseback riding _and_ a beach trip, you spoil me," Dianna said when she saw the two horses saddled up, "At least I can ride normally today. No side saddle for me."

"I thought you'd enjoy that," Fergus smiled, walking Selwyn over to Dianna as she approached, "Ready to go?"

Dianna nodded and mounted Selwyn, feeling much more comfortable in the saddle now compared to the side saddle riding. Of course, that didn't make Fergus stop fretting, waiting to make sure she was alright and comfortable before mounting Brogan.

"Are you sure you're feeling up to this?" Fergus asked, for the umpteenth time these last two days since planning this date, "You're not bruised or sore at all?"

"Fergus, I'm perfectly fine," Dianna assured him yet again, "A few remaining bumps and bruises aren't going to stop me from having a good time today."

Fergus seemed to finally accept that would be her answer, he doubted she'd say anything otherwise, so he urged the horse forward, Dianna following after him. The trip to the beach took only a few minutes, and they spent the first part of their outing walking the horses down the beach, letting the horses stretch their legs further. They didn't talk much, since it was hard to hear each other over the crashing waves and the wind was particularly harsh. After walking down the length of the beach and halfway back, the two decided the sun had been beating down on them long enough so they dismounted their horses, and let them wander, since there was no worry of them running off where they couldn't find or reach them. Dianna was the first to kick of her shoes and head toward the water. She considered briefly rolling up her pants to keep them dry longer, but considering the sort of world she was in, she thought better of it, and just let the water get them wet. She knew there was a time where showing ankle was scandalous, but she couldn't remember where and when that exactly was so better safe than sorry.

The moment the water washed over her feet, her body started cooling down and Dianna sighed contently. She had never been fond of the heat, and the cooling ocean water was welcome. She got about shin deep when Fergus came to stand beside her.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

"I'm feeling cooler, so yes, feeling better," Dianna replied.

"The heat can become overwhelming in the summer," Fergus said, "The next four weeks will get worse. It's like that every year."

Dianna groaned and Fergus laughed, "You are welcome to come visit so you have access to the beach."

"Won't you be busy?"

"Most of the time, but you can come here yourself, if you were desperate for some relief."

Dianna's cheeks flushed a light pink as she said, "But I prefer spending my time with you."

Fergus smiled, "I prefer it that way too."

They stood there in silence for a few moments before Fergus suddenly stooped down and using his cupped hands, sent a big spray of water at Dianna, getting most of the left side of her pants wet.

"Aah! Hey!" Dianna cried indignantly.

"Didn't you come here to escape the heat?" Fergus asked teasingly, sending another spray at her, though his one smaller since he used only one hand, "How are you going to do that with only your feet wet."

"I'll determine how far I go in," Dianna replied, kicking water back at him though that hardly did anything, "And didn't you say you learned your lesson of doing this to girls."

"I haven't learned it with you," Fergus replied, a mischievous glint in his eye.

From growing up with Olyvia, she knew what was coming next seeing that look, and Dianna hopped away in time to avoid being grabbed. Letting out a small frightened cry, she continued running.

"Okay this is so not fair! I just got in!" Dianna shouted over her shoulder, "I don't want to get all wet!"

"But where's the fun in that?"

Now in shallower water where it lapped against her ankles, Dianna was able to run a bit faster, but Fergus apparently had plenty of practice running in the water and had easily caught up. She let out another shout, though it sounded more like a squeak, as Fergus scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder.

"I'm not going in!" Dianna exclaimed, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist, "You can't make me!"

"Well I can certainly try," Fergus laughed.

Dianna frowned, before her lips curled up into a wicked smile when an idea came to her head. She wasn't sure if it'd work, but she was definitely going to try. Moving her hands to Fergus's sides, she began tickling him.

"Ah! Okay, no! That's cheating!"

"Then put me down. Nicely," Dianna added, since her braid was touching the water now since Fergus had gone in quite a ways. She didn't want him throwing her in as "putting her down".

Fergus hoisted her back up over his shoulder, and dropped her down onto her feet. She landed at an odd angle and would have toppled over backwards had Fergus not timed it wrong with the incoming wave. The strong surge of water pushed Dianna forward, into Fergus, and they both went under. Finding her footing, Dianna jolted out of the water, coughing and sputtering from having gotten some salt water up her nose. And now her clothes were suctioned against her skin, showing a bit too much of her figure as Dianna was comfortable. Fergus was on his feet a few seconds later, who only laughed at the glare Dianna was giving him.

"I said nicely!" Dianna said, skimming her hand over the water and spraying him in the face.

"That was nicely," Fergus retorted, a huge grin on his face, "You landed on your feet."

"For like...two seconds."

"The wave caught you. Which I have to admit, I wasn't expecting the it to be as strong as it was," Fergus commented more to himself.

"And that's what you get for not putting me down nicely," Dianna said, shoving him in the shoulder.

"Are you sure you want to start that?" Fergus asked, still grinning.

Dianna tried pushing him over, but he was too big for her to do so, not being very strong herself. Fergus laughed at her feeble attempts and after nearly a minute, he picked her up and tossed her in again. Dianna resurfaced with a growl. She'd get him back, one way or another. Going up to him again, she tried knocking his feet out from under him, but again her attempts were futile. When Fergus went to grab her again, she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug, refusing to let go.

"Do you yield?" Fergus asked.

Dianna grumbled under her breath before replying loud enough for Fergus to hear, "You have an unfair advantage."

"So...yes you do?"

Dianna looked over her shoulder to see another big wave coming. She waited until it was close enough to give her reply.

"No. I don't."

Letting go, she gave Fergus a good shove in the shoulders, pushing herself back into the wave which caught Fergus milliseconds later, toppling him back over into the water. She stayed upright though, and was doing a little victory dance when Fergus popped back up.

"I am victorious," Dianna said triumphantly, a grin on her face until she saw Fergus's countenance, and it disappeared, "No...stay back Fergus. Fergus—AH!"

Fergus surged forward and grabbed her around the waist before she could try escaping back to shore, hoisting her up off the sea floor a good foot or so. He didn't toss her in again though, merely threatening as she clung onto him again.

"How about a truce?" Dianna asked.

Fergus chuckled, "Don't want to sully your victory by being dunked again?"

"More like I want to keep salt water out of my lungs," she replied, "So will you put me down nicely in the real sense of the word this time?"

She was gently lowered back into the water, and she couldn't help but glare a little at the grin and dancing lights in Fergus's eyes. She wished he didn't have as much fun tossing her into the water.

Fergus left one arm wrapped around her waist as he pushed back strands of wet hair that were plastered onto her face, his grinning countenance eventually changing to a look of endearment, making Dianna lose the glare. And for once she was unable to tear her eyes away from his. Usually she'd feel shy and look away, but not this time. They were only a few inches away, Fergus's forehead nearly touching hers.

"Oh how I want to kiss you," he said lowly, but loud enough for her to hear over the waves, his fingers gently brushing down the side of her face and across her bottom lip.

Dianna could feel the blush on her face as red blossomed over her cheeks, her brain starting to malfunction from the sparks set off by his delicate touch, "And um...just what is...um...stopping you?"

She couldn't believe she just said that, but in all honesty she wouldn't mind one. They had been seeing each other just over a month now and she had most definitely thought about it before. Why wouldn't he just _kiss her already_?

"From your reaction last time I thought...it would be better if I didn't," Fergus replied.

"Need I remind you that was _before_ we started seeing each other."

"Still, I thought you needed time."

"It's been a month Fergus. I think that's been quite a bit of time."

Apparently Fergus didn't need any more convincing as his lips locked over Dianna's, his hand winding around to the back of her neck as he pulled her close. Dianna didn't expect herself to be one of those swooning type girls, but her legs buckled under her the moment Fergus's lips landed on hers. With Fergus's arm still wrapped snugly around her waist, she didn't drop straight into the water, only leaning slightly more into him.

The salt water was all they could taste at first, but it didn't make the kiss any less pleasant. It was gone after the first few kisses anyway. Though it felt like they lasted forever, in reality it had only been at most a minute before they broke apart.

"It feels like I have been waiting ages to do that," Fergus breathed.

Dianna flushed red with guilt, "Sorry for being so...unreadable."

Because there were a few times she _thought_ her face had practically been screaming _JUST KISS ME DAMMIT!_ Such as when he visited the morning after her encounter with the scumbags on the street. Maybe he couldn't see it through her nearly swollen shut eye, puffy face, and bruising.

"None of it is your fault," Fergus said, "I was just being...overly cautious. I was afraid I'd push you away again."

"As long as you don't do it now and into the water, I think we're good."

"I'm being serious Dianna," Fergus said, not being particularly fond of her joking manner at the moment.

"I don't mean to make it sound like our relationship doesn't matter to me, because it does," Dianna clarified, "I've just...never been in a relationship before so you'll have to forgive me if I put up my defenses at times."

"Will I ever get you to trust me?"

"I do trust you, really I do Fergus," Dianna said, "But I still am...cautious."

"Seems to be a lot of that going around," Fergus muttered, "But I can understand why."

"And I can understand why'd you be cautious with me," Dianna said, "I can have a bit of a temper."

A bit of a temper was putting it lightly, but Fergus decided to play it safe and not make that comment. He didn't want to make Dianna upset at him so early in the day...though he sort of did that already with the dunking and tossing earlier. _But_ he had made it up already.

"Everyone has their moments," Fergus said instead.

"I haven't seen yours yet."

"And I hope you never do," Fergus replied.

Dianna was sure she'd see it eventually, that's just how life went. No one could keep a part of their personality hidden for long from someone they spent a lot of time with.

* * *

Fergus and Dianna spent a few more hours at the beach until their hair had dried into stiff links like dreadlocks and their feet had turned to prunes. With their dried clothes, it became uncomfortable to walk around in so Dianna couldn't wait to get home and take a bath. A cold one. Hot water would be too much in this heat. So slowly, and perhaps slightly painfully, they mounted their horses and returned to the stables. Dianna was surprised to find that Fergus actually tended to the horses himself, she figured he'd have a stable hand do it, but it was refreshing nonetheless to see he didn't expect to be waited on hand and foot. She even got to help a little, since she didn't know where things went she couldn't help as much as she wanted. Once he had finished putting everything away, Dianna was planning on heading home.

"Do you have to leave yet?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"You know how uncomfortable these salt encrusted clothes are," Dianna replied, "So I'd like to go home to bathe and change."

"You could do that here."

"Right, and just would I have to change into?"

Fergus didn't say anything for a few seconds while he thought, eventually replying, "There may still be some clothes of my mother's still here."

"No thank you."

Fergus sighed, "I'd like for you to stay."

"Spend the rest of the day with Teagan," Dianna suggested, "He did stay longer to hang out with you after all."

"I guess you are right," Fergus sighed again, "At least let me give you a proper goodbye."

Pushing her up against a nearby beam, he kissed her before she could argue. Reaching up with her hands, Dianna laced her fingers into the dry tangled mess of his hair at the nape of his neck as she kissed him back. Already she was addicted to the wonderful feeling of his kisses.

Fergus was starting to get lost in the kiss when he was rudely pulled back to reality by the frantic shouts of a servant. He and Dianna pulled apart as the cries reached their ears.

"My Lord!" the servant exclaimed, screeching to a halt inside the stable doors, "It's—It's—It's."

"It's what?" Fergus asked, a little irritated for having been interrupted "Speak!"

The servant opened his mouth to do so, but let out a squeak of fright instead as he darted off to the side as someone else stepped inside behind him. Both Fergus and Dianna froze.

"Hello brother."


	9. Chapter 9

**I HAVE A SPACEBAR! BASK IN ITS BEAUTIFUL RECTANGULAR GLORY! On other news, I've been very distracted the last few weeks so I apologize for taking so long to get this chapter written up. And I am as red as a lobster. Four hours out in the sun with only one coating of sunscreen equals one red lady. It hurts… And I hope you guys don't think I'm moving certain things too fast in this story...I need certain things to happen for future plot.  
**

**Melysande: Oh I am soooooo happy I have a spacebar again! (If you couldn't tell) I love Fergus and Teagan too, but I like Teagan more. (I think it's the beard.)**

**Pollyanna24: When is Aedan ever up to anything good?**

**csorciere: You can probably tell with my writing that I dislike Eamon with a great intensity. I do have my plans for him…plans indeed. But Teagan is awesome! I loves Teagan. Who doesn't love Teagan?**

**HorrorZombabe: Oh noes indeed.**

**mariarosa: I love writing cliffhangers so much! They are so much fun! :)**

**CHAPTER NINE**

"What are you doing here?" Fergus asked bitterly, snapping out of his frozen state and overcome with rage.

"Now that isn't any way to greet your king. Or brother," Aedan replied, "And your...order for me to never come back here was waived at the Landsmeet. It's been put behind us. Hasn't it?"

"That doesn't change my question," Fergus retorted, "State your business."

"I came to see you," Aedan said, "Is that so much of a shock."

Fergus said nothing. He wasn't sure what to think. Had his brother indeed changed? Had he come to apologize? He certainly looked different, like he wasn't haggard down with a heavy burden, but he still didn't look like the boy he grew up with. There was still something...dark or menacing about him now.

"I had heard you had began courting again," Aedan continued, since Fergus was saying nothing, "Though I had my suspicions as to whom, I figured I'd come see for myself and meet the young lady. I see my suspicions were correct."

Fergus moved himself between Aedan and Dianna, "So now you know. Your business has been conducted."

"Trying to get rid of me so soon? But I just got here."

"Last time we saw each other you wanted me dead," Fergus said venomously, "So don't expect me to welcome you here with open arms. I have not forgotten what you did."

Aedan rolled his eyes. So he obviously wasn't going to apologize.

"What's done is done," Aedan said, "So am I allowed to stay?"

Fergus wanted to say no, but he was worried of what Aedan would do if he did.

"I can't trust you," Fergus said instead.

"I guess that's understandable," Aedan sighed, "Very well, I shall stay elsewhere. Am I at least allowed to have supper with you tonight so I may speak with you?"

Fergus thought for a few moments before replying, "Fine."

"And I'd very much like Ms. Hamilton to be there," Aedan added, looking over Fergus's shoulder at Dianna.

"No," Fergus said immediately.

An amused look crossed Aedan's face, "Protective much are we? I'm afraid I must insist, I did come all this way to get to know your significant other. So what does she say?"

Fergus turned to Dianna, "You know you don't have to."

"And I don't want to," Dianna whispered so only Fergus could hear her, "But I'm not about to let you be nearly alone with him."

But Fergus didn't want Aedan anywhere around her, afraid of what he might try doing to her. Dianna was going to do what she thought best though, and there was nothing he could do about that.

"Have you reconsidered?" Aedan asked when Fergus turned back around.

"We will both see you at supper," Fergus replied.

"Until then."

Aedan turned and left, and Dianna let out the breath she didn't realize she had been holding.

"I guess you best return home and get ready for supper," Fergus said.

"I'll be back in about two hours."

Fergus sighed, "Oh I hope I don't regret this."

* * *

Hurrying home didn't exactly do any favors to Dianna's thighs, which were chafed to a bright red from her breeches. A cold bath was definitely the remedy for this. Once she had finished cleaning up, she changed into one of her nicer dresses. Her fancy dress was trashed, so the next step down would have to do. When she went downstairs to get her mother's help with putting up her hair, her mother couldn't help but comment on the state of her skin.

"Well you certainly got burned today."

"Is it bad?" Dianna asked, tapping her cheeks with her hands to see if she could feel how bad it was. They were warm, so she knew they had to be fairly burned.

"Not _too_ bad, but you're definitely red," Brenda replied, brushing out Dianna's hair, "I don't think it'll peel."

"Well that's good. I might scare Fergus off if he saw my face peeling off."

"If his brother doesn't scare him, I doubt anything you do will."

"Oh, he's scared of Aedan alright. Scared of what he might do to him, and the people he cares about."

"So why did you agree to go again?" Brenda asked.

"I can't just let him be alone with Aedan," Dianna replied, "I know there is little I could do against him, but...I want to keep an eye out for Fergus. I care about him, I don't want anything bad to happen to him."

"Let's hope nothing else bad happens to you while you're at it."

* * *

Fergus had been waiting outside the gates for Dianna to arrive, dressed in his full plate mail, in the heat. When he saw her, he went to greet her as she approached. Taking hold of her hands, he gave them a kiss before bending down and placing another upon her lips.

"You can change your mind right now and go back home," Fergus said.

"And give Aedan a reason to go into Berserker mode and start slaughtering people? I don't think so," Dianna replied, "I agreed to come, so I'll suffer through this with you."

"I'd still rather you not be here," Fergus said, "He hates your family as much as your sister. There's no telling what he might do tonight."

"Well, we can at least attempt to not make him angry."

Fergus scoffed, "That'll be a challenge."

Taking her arm, the two headed inside, and once they entered the main hall Fergus said to Dianna, "We still have some time before supper and I have a few items of business to finish. So you may do what you please, but Aedan has been wandering the halls. Outside may be the best place to wait."

Since she wanted to keep time near Aedan to a minimum, she was going to take Fergus's suggestion and not stay inside. So it sounded like the gardens were her easiest option. Or she could go to the stables, though she might not stay all too clean from going then.

"I guess I'll head to the gardens."

"I'll fine you there when I'm done."

Fergus said a quick goodbye, giving her another kiss on her lips before leaving for the study. Once he was gone, Dianna made her way outside to the gardens, where it was still warm, but there was a cooling breeze coming up from the ocean. Dianna was glad her hair was done up as a braided crown around her head. It would take some serious wind to get any of that loose so she wouldn't go to dinner with her hair in a serious mess.

"Lady Dianna, a pleasure it is to see you again," a familiar voice said, making Dianna jump since she wasn't expecting anyone else to be out there.

Whirling around, with a hand pressed to her chest, she saw it was indeed Teagan, "Oh Teagan! You startled me."

"Thought I might have been someone else?"

"No, I just wasn't expecting anyone else to be out here."

"Considering who is in _there_," he pointed to the castle, "I'm surprised there aren't more out here."

That was very true.

"But I apologize for startling you, it was not my intention," Teagan continued.

"Oh don't worry about it," Dianna assured him, "It's no big deal."

Teagan looked slightly confused, but he understood it as her basically saying "apology accepted" so he just nodded in response.

"So what brings you back here tonight?" Teagan asked, walking up beside her as Dianna headed to the wall to look out over the city.

"I was invited for supper," she replied.

"Fergus wanted you here when his majesty is?"

"His majesty is the one who invited me."

"I see," Teagan said, "Well, you look absolutely radiant tonight."

"I-I-I...thank you," Dianna muttered, her already red cheeks darkening to a crimson from a blush. What was up with the men here and all the flattery? Was it just the mannerism, or was there something more behind it? She certainly hoped there wasn't because that would only cause problems.

"So just what made you agree to join his majesty for supper tonight?" Teagan asked, jumping back a subject.

"It was more of I didn't want to leave Fergus with Ae—his majesty," Dianna quickly corrected herself, "I don't know if you know what happened last time he was here, but those two shouldn't be alone together."

"All I heard was his majesty tried to kill him."

"And almost succeeded," Dianna said, turning to look at Teagan, "If it weren't for my family, he would have bled out in our living room."

Teagan was silent for a few moments, and Dianna went back to staring out over the city, when he replied, "Don't you worry for your own safety? If his majesty is willing to do that to his own brother, he'd do the same to anyone associated with Olyvia. And you're her sister, you couldn't be more associated with her."

"I worry...but I worry for Fergus too," Dianna said quietly.

"You really do care for him...don't you?"

Dianna nodded, her sunburnt cheeks darkening from her blush, "I do."

"Well...Fergus is certainly lucky to have someone who cares about him so much, that they're willing to put themselves on the line," Teagan said, "I shall take my leave now, let you have time to yourself."

"Oh, okay," Dianna said, a little surprised by this sudden exit, "I'll see you at supper then?"

"Until then," Teagan said, and taking her left hand kissed the top of her knuckles, sending an even more powerful blush across Dianna's cheeks. And perhaps his lips lingered longer than necessary, but that could have just been her imagination.

Teagan said nothing else as he stood straight and headed back inside. Dianna rubbed her knuckles absentmindedly, wondering what _that_ was about. Did people just kiss other people's hands here in greeting along with the flattery and compliments? She really needed to brush up on mannerisms so she knew just what the heck was going on.

* * *

On a balcony above the gardens, Aedan was enjoying a glass of wine. He had wandered the castle long enough, he decided to head to the lounge to relax and get himself a drink. He was halfway through his third glass when he heard voices below. Leaning on the railing, he saw it was Teagan and Dianna, so he decided to eavesdrop to see if he'd hear anything useful. He couldn't help but smirk hearing Teagan laying it on thick with the flattery to Dianna. He was making it quite obvious that he was attracted to the woman. Teagan never had luck when it came to women, always finding one that was already taken. With a low chuckle, he finished off his wine and placed the glass back on the table. Perhaps he could use this infatuation to his advantage. Of course, he'd have to take his time, but he could wait. He was a much more patient man nowadays.

Of course, with Dianna now alone in the gardens, Aedan couldn't pass up the opportunity. Since he had finished with his wine, he left the lounge and headed down the stairwell. As he passed servants he noticed them duck their heads and move quickly to get out of his way and avoid him. He relished the fear they exuded, that they feared _him_. What more power could one have, than the fear over _everyone_. Though there were the few that didn't fear him, or at least put up a good show they didn't. Dianna for one, she seemed to be just angry at him more than anything. Just like Olyvia had.

Entering the gardens, Aedan walked to where he was right behind Dianna before saying anything.

"Off on your own already?" he asked, causing Dianna to whirl around, "Does my brother not enjoy your company? Or is it you prefer some other's company?"

Dianna's panicked countenance quickly changed into a death glare, only making Aedan's smirk grow wider, "For your information, Fergus had business to attend to. Unlike _someone_ I know, he actually does his job."

"Feeling brave, are we?" Aedan questioned, leaning in closer to her, to which she leaned away, "Insulting me isn't the best way to get on my good side."

"Do you even _have_ a good side?"

Aedan leaned in even closer, pinning Dianna in her spot against the railing. She had nowhere to go to get away.

"Dear girl," Aedan whispered, "There is a side of me that _won't_ kill you."

Dianna's stomach began to twist into knots as fear began to eat away at her insides, but she wasn't going to let it show, "So you really did come to finish what you started."

"All in good time my dear," Aedan said at normal volume, grabbing her chin with a hand, "It'll give you time to reconsider your place. Besides, it'd be such a waste of a pretty girl."

Just as Dianna was about to slap Aedan's hand away, he pressed his lips against hers. With a muffled cry of disgust and horror, she whipped her arm back to get more power behind the punch she then delivered to his face. She didn't care that it was Aedan, that he could potentially murder her right there for "attacking him", the king, he freaking put his acidic mouth on her face.

"Oh gross!" Dianna exclaimed as she began spitting and hastily wiping her mouth. That would never get rid of his taint on her now. She may as well rip her lips off, or stick her face in a vat of acid. At least he didn't have time to get any tongue action on. If he had, then she'd have to drink acid to make her mouth feel clean again.

Aedan wiped away at the blood coming from his nose, then chuckled lowly, "You seemed to not mind Teagan's advances."

"What?" Dianna squeaked.

"Teagan," Aedan said, turning to her again, "He fancies you. Did he not make it obvious?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Are you really that stupid to not know?" Aedan retorted, which made Dianna glare at him again, "I'm a man and _I_ even noticed."

"Noticed…you were _spying_ on me?"

"I was merely enjoying the scenery," Aedan said, "It's not my fault neither of you thought to look _up_."

Dianna did just that now, and saw the balcony above the gardens. Great, had she noticed he was up there, she never would have been out here. She would have gone straight to the library, knowing he wasn't there. But really, what was he talking about with Teagan?

"Whatever, but I still have no idea what you mean with Teagan and…liking me," Dianna said, "I just met him! I—why am I bothering explaining this to you? I'm leaving."

As she went to go, Aedan grabbed her by her the wrist to stop her, "No, please, go on about how you aren't charmed by Teagan. I've heard from plenty of women, all of them married mind you, that he is rather charming."

"If you are insinuating that _I_ have feelings for him, you are sorely mistaken," Dianna retorted, ripping her arm from Aedan's grip, "I care for Fergus more than I have anyone else, and no one will change that."

Aedan gave a short laugh, mixed with a scoff, "You keep telling yourself that."

As Dianna stood there, mostly glaring at him, he could see the doubt creeping onto her face. That was all he needed though, to plant the seed, let it grow until it destroyed her and his brother. After a few moments, she finally turned and hurried back inside. Aedan waited a few minutes before heading inside as well, looking for what other havoc he could cause.

* * *

Finding the lavatory, Dianna spent the next ten minutes washing her face, or more specifically, her lips. She could still feel Aedan's lips against hers, and it was disgusting. She couldn't believe he did that. What balls he had. Next time she kick them so hard that they'd disintegrate. Part of her didn't want to tell Fergus what Aedan had done, but the other part of her knew she needed to tell him. There shouldn't be secrets between them, Olyvia advised her on that, that a couple needed to communicate to have a good relationship. And she wanted things to be good and well between her and Fergus, she really liked him. And what was Aedan saying about her liking Teagan? That was ludicrous! Sure he was nice, but that didn't mean she liked him. Besides, he was also Fergus's friend. He wouldn't try stealing his friend's girl…right? Filling her hands with water, she splashed it into her face to clear her head. She just needed to stop thinking about this, forget about it, if she could, and just go on with life. Except she had dinner still to survive with Aedan there. Ugh, she was so not looking forward to it.

* * *

Fergus still had paperwork left when a servant informed him supper was ready. Setting the remainder aside, he stepped out of the study, and as he was passing through the library, noticed Dianna curled up in a chair, reading a large book that looked to be more for the ability to hide her rather than actually reading it.

"I thought you'd be out in the gardens," Fergus said, pulling down the book so he could see her face, which scrunched up into a frown when he said gardens.

"I was…until your brother paid me a visit," Dianna growled, snapping the book shut, "Supper is ready I assume?"

"It is, but first tell me what he did, you look rather upset."

"Rather upset doesn't even begin to cover it," Dianna seethed, "He…he…he…ugh!"

Fergus just waited patiently for her to work past her anger in order to speak. He figured it'd be safer.

"He kissed me," Dianna finally muttered a few minutes later.

"WHAT!" Fergus exclaimed.

"I punched him though," Dianna added, "Not like it makes it any better, but it made me feel a little better."

Fergus ran a hand through his hair as he felt his anger rising as well, "That's it, this is the last time I'll tolerate his presence here. I can't trust him, and I won't let him try seducing the woman I'm courting."

Dianna made a face of disgust, "He'd never seduce me."

"As glad as I am to hear it, it doesn't mean he'd stop trying."

Dianna whimpered, "Why me?"

"Because you're female," Fergus replied, taking Dianna's hand and gently pulling her up onto her feet, "Aedan never was too picky."

"He's a fiend."

"He is indeed. So are you ready for supper?"

"As ready as I'm going to be," Dianna sighed.

Fergus held out his arm to her, which she graciously took and the two made their way to the dining hall. Aedan was already there, sitting in the chair to the right of the head of the table. Fergus was actually quite surprised he hadn't seated himself at the head of the table, but the seat to the right was considered the seat of honor, and Fergus would rather have had Dianna there. She didn't seem to care or notice however, taking the seat to his left as Fergus sat, shooting a glare across the table at Aedan.

"A pleasure it is to see you again so soon as well, Lady Dianna," Aedan said with a smug smirk.

With a roll of her eyes Dianna turned her head away so she wouldn't have to look at him, nor would she give him the pleasure of any reply.

A few moments later Teagan entered, and of course seeing the seating, went and sat next to Dianna, since he wouldn't choose to sit next to Aedan. Dianna cast a sidelong glance at Teagan, before glancing at Aedan and she could tell he was laughing on the inside, with the look he was now giving her. Giving her head a quick shake she turned away again. There was no way Aedan was right about his accusations toward Teagan.

"Hello Bann Teagan," Aedan greeted once Teagan was seated, "I never got the opportunity to say hello earlier. You were…previously engaged."

"Greetings to you as well, your Majesty," Teagan replied politely, while Dianna continued to squirm, knowing what Aedan had been referring to, and he seemed to be enjoying watching her discomfort.

"It's been quite some time since we've last spoken to each other," Aedan continued as servants brought in plates of food and set them down in front of the guests, "About six months ago wasn't it?"

Teagan nodded, "Yes, because the last time we actually spoke to each other was on the way to Denerim with the armies. Not that it was much of a conversation, seeing as how we were at war."

"Shall we offer our thanks to the Maker?" Fergus interrupted before anyone could start digging into the food.

"Of course," Aedan replied.

Bowing their heads, Fergus offered a brief prayer of thanks over the meal, and they all started in on their meal. It was a few minutes before anyone said anything.

"So Dianna, I really know nothing about you," Aedan said.

"Aside from the fact I'm related to Olyvia? I thought nothing else mattered to you," Dianna spat.

Fergus tensed, giving her the "this-is-the-sort-of-talk-we-want-to-avoid" look. But it was too late now. Aedan didn't seem ruffled by her words, in fact there was no reaction from him, the calm, yet smug, look still on his face.

"You're seeing my brother, the other stuff matters," Aedan replied, "So what sort of interests do you have?"

Dianna looked over to Fergus, silently asking if she should bother divulging any information, to which he just shrugged in response.

"I like reading," Dianna replied.

"Reading huh? Fergus was never much of a reader himself. He preferred training," Aedan said, and then after taking a drink of his wine, "I've heard Teagan is a bit of a book enthusiast."

Dianna stiffened. What the heck was Aedan trying to do, bring Teagan into this?

"I enjoy a good book, when I have the time," Teagan said, "But why does that matter?"

"Oh, just wondering myself," Aedan replied.

_Right, you _so _were curious for your own personal knowledge,_ Dianna thought bitterly. He was up to something, that much she knew.

"Also out of curiosity, since Fergus has started seeing someone, is there anyone that has caught your eye Teagan?"

The brief glance over in Dianna's direction was all Aedan needed to know that he was indeed right about Teagan liking Dianna. Of course, Teagan replied with, "I haven't been out much, I've been busy in Rainsfere and Redcliffe. So no."

"Is that so?" Aedan said quietly.

Silence filled the room again for a few minutes before, yet again, Aedan decided to talk.

"So I'm curious brother, is there really anything you and Dianna have in common? Seeing as how she's not talking much, I can't get a feeling about how well you two really work together."

"There is," Fergus replied, "Stop trying to put doubt into my relationship Aedan."

Aedan leaned forward on an elbow towards his brother, "Oh, that wasn't my intention, but are you really starting to doubt it?"

Both Dianna and Teagan jumped when Fergus suddenly lunged over the table and slammed his brother up against the back of his chair, his hand gripping him tightly on the muscle between his neck and shoulder. And for a moment, Dianna saw the terrified look of a younger brother expecting big brother to hit him, but it quickly left and that smug look was back on Aedan's face.

"I don't care if you're the king, I'm your older brother, and as so I deserve a little more respect from you," Fergus growled, "Nor should you try to undermine my relationships. And while we're on that note. Stay away from Dianna. She isn't another girl to add to your dalliances."

Fergus let go of Aedan, and sat back down in his chair, resuming where he had left off in his meal. Aedan looked surprised for a second, before sitting up straight again, and cleared his throat, "You sure have some balls."

"I'm not going to put up with your shit anymore Aedan," Fergus retorted, shocking Dianna and Teagan with his language, "I tried being nice before, tried dealing with your antics politely, but you've pushed me too far. So now you have to put up with me treating you the way you need to be treated, like a spoiled little brat."

"Got it out of your system?" Aedan said cockily.

Dianna rolled her eyes in disbelief. He was just asking to be punched and drop-kicked in the balls.

"I am so wishing mother was here right now," Fergus growled, "She'd bend you over her knee and give you the beating of a lifetime."

"Yeah, well, she's dead," Aedan shot back bitterly.

Fergus's face started turning red as his temper rose. An interruption was needed, and quickly. Luckily Teagan had something to divert this catastrophe.

"How is her majesty doing?" Teagan asked.

Aedan slowly turned his head so he was looking at Teagan now, "She is doing well, thank you for asking."

"So things are smoothing out between you two?" Teagan asked, "You two were practically at each other's throats at the Landsmeet."

"Yes, things have improved between us," Aedan replied, "Certain things have…changed in the last month, we get along much better now."

Dianna and Fergus shared a look, both wondering if that was supposed to mean something about the rumor they had heard, with the demon. It sure sounded like it to them.

There was little talk for the remainder of dinner, the tension between Fergus and Aedan still tight and ready to snap. And Dianna didn't want it to snap, otherwise someone would wind up injured or dead. If there was any talking done, it was between Fergus and Teagan. Due to the high tension in the air, dinner seemed to go on much longer, but finally it was over. Aedan said a quick goodbye and left just like that. Teagan took his leave next, retiring to his guest room for the evening. Fergus and Dianna left together, Fergus planning on walking her home.

"Well that was…bracing," Dianna said as they left the dining hall.

"That is an understatement," Fergus said, "And he's going to be here a few more days. Try to stay hidden until he's gone."

"Don't worry, I'm hiding all the time as it is anyway when I'm not here," Dianna said, "Those noble girls in my district are vicious. Poor Maggie got cornered by them when she distracted them for me one day. They didn't hurt her, just lashed her with their biting words. They weren't nice, so it's better to just stay away from them."

"You know that Aedan is a thousand times worse though, he wouldn't use words," Fergus said.

"Well that's what he did today," Dianna muttered.

Fergus's brow furrowed, "What do you mean by that?"

"Oh, just threatened to kill me," Dianna said, and then mimicked Aedan, "'_All in good time dear girl_.' Ugh, he has something planned for the both of us, that's for sure so be careful."

"As I always am around him now, but I appreciate the warning," Fergus said, "I can't believe he's fallen so far from where he was before. We used to get along."

"And just how long ago was that?"

"When he was fifteen, and I was eighteen," Fergus said, "So eleven years now. We were practically best friends until he discovered women."

"Eleven years…yeah, I doubt there is any coming back from that."

Fergus sighed sadly, "I've known for quite a while that I've lost my brother. My parents would be…distraught over the rivalry and hatred between us now, if they were here. I know it's horrible to say, but I'm glad they're not here to see it."

Dianna looked up at Fergus sympathetically, placing her free hand on the arm wrapped around hers, giving it a consoling squeeze, "Sometimes I forget just how much you've been through…it seems so unfair."

"Life isn't fair."

"I know," Dianna replied, "But still, you've had to deal with things no one should ever have to suffer through."

"It's been tough, as you know, but it's made me stronger, and I hope also made me a better person," Fergus said, "I know the one good thing out of the whole situation is having met you."

Dianna ducked her head down as her cheeks turned red, "Flatterer."

Fergus stopped, bringing her to an abrupt standstill before grabbing her chin to turn her face to him, "You must know it's the truth."

"Doesn't mean it's not flattery," Dianna retorted.

A small smile tugged at the corner of Fergus's lip, "Perhaps."

As they continued on their way, they didn't converse much, since there was little to speak about other than bad news. A little over fifteen minutes later they arrived at her doorstep, the sun starting to set, setting the sky ablaze with beautiful reds and oranges. When Dianna turned to Fergus to say her goodbyes, he took hold of both her hands in his, rubbing his fingers almost anxiously over her knuckles, "Since I do not know exactly when Aedan will be gone…it would be best if you stayed away from the castle until that time. I will send for you once all is clear."

"Don't have to tell me twice," Dianna said, "Just…be careful."

"As always," Fergus said, tracing the side of her face with his fingers, "Goodnight Dianna."

"Goodnight."

Since they were out in the public, with neighbors for sure watching, Dianna wasn't expecting any intimate goodbyes, just the normal kiss on the hand, but she was surprised when Fergus went in for a kiss. Hand wrapping around the back of her neck, he pulled her to him, capturing her lips in a passionate kiss. Dianna wasn't sure whether to pleasantly surprised, or horrified that he publically displayed his affection. It would all depend on neighbor's reactions tomorrow.

Once breaking away from the kiss, Dianna stumbled her way inside, nearly falling over as she leaned up against the door to shut it.

"You look overwhelmed," her mother commented as she came to check on her daughter, "Dinner was that stressful?"

"You have no idea."

* * *

Aedan was practically swimming in documents in his room at the inn, examining and scrutinizing every word in them. Seeing as they all pertained to Alistair and Olyvia, and potential hideouts, he was going to go over them a thousand times, and then a thousand times more. Surely there had to be a clue in there _somewhere_ as to where they were. Every trail, every lead, every rumor, stopped here in Highever. They weren't in Highever, else he would have found them so where could they have gone.

"Surely Zevran would have found them by now," Aedan growled in frustration, "He's an Antivan Crow…or was, but _no one_ can hide this long from them. Even Zevran himself wasn't able to hide from the Crows that long."

Taking another swig of his ale, he glared at the documents before a look of realization dawned on his face.

"That's just it…Zevran _would_ have found them by now," Aedan said to himself, "I can't believe it took me this long to realize. The little bastard has turned on me. Well…he knew what the consequences would be for his actions."

Chugging down the rest of his ale, he went to his pack that was set on his bed and after searching through it for a few moments, pulled out a worn looking document.

"I'm certain the Crows will be happy to take care of Zevran for me."


	10. Chapter 10

**So my sunburn has turned into a tan (for once) so now I am feeling oh so much better. Thanks Pollyanna24 for the sunburn care tips. And I got another chapter done. Yay for progress!**

**Kate499: Haha, I'm sorry, your review made me laugh. But do we really have to worry about Zev? He's a slippery fellow. And technically it would be the Crows who'd hurt Zev if they caught him. **_**If**_**.**

**csorciere: Oh Aedan will…in time. (And I purposefully didn't reply to your last suggestion of Teagan and Maggie because I have plans that I don't want to give away.)**

**LilysSong: Aw, why thank you! :D**

**mariarosa: Hahaha, that's actually what I had planned, give the crows a better reason to be tracking down our favorite elf assassin and end up in Kirkwall eventually. Oh, and about that triangle…yeah it's going to get bad soon.**

**CHAPTER TEN**

Fergus saw little of Aedan during his weeklong visit, which he didn't mind in the least. The only time he saw his brother was when Aedan came to use the study for the documents it contained, during which Fergus would excuse himself so he could avoid his brother. At least Aedan did tell him when he was leaving, instead of making Fergus figure it out over the span of a few days. Teagan left not many days after Aedan as well, needing to return to Rainesfere. With Aedan gone, Fergus was okay with Dianna visiting at the castle again. When she first visited him after Aedan's departure, Dianna found Fergus quite irritable and quiet. He mellowed out after a few days, but it wasn't until another week later that he was back to himself and smiling again.

After the end of that week, Fergus decided it was time for another beach trip, which Dianna wasn't going to argue against, since the heat was again taking a toll. This time she decided to just wear a dress, for lack of chafing later on her way home. She and Fergus had gotten completely soaked within the first ten minutes, swam around a bit, before Dianna needed a break and headed to the blanket they brought down with them, laying down on it to let the sun dry her out. She knew her hair would dry into dreadlocks, but she hardly cared now.

"A bit waterlogged are we?" she heard Fergus ask a few minutes later.

Moving her arm away from her eyes, she looked up to see him approaching the blanket before sitting down next to her.

"Not anymore," Dianna replied, "It's hot enough I'm already starting to dry."

"It is hot, that I can agree to," Fergus said, reaching to the buttons on his tunic and began unbuttoning them, pausing a moment to ask, "You don't mind…do you?"

Dianna couldn't help but blush slightly when she replied, "No, I don't mind."

"Good, because it's sweltering out here," Fergus said, unbuttoning his shirt halfway.

Once Dianna started drying out more, she had to agree with Fergus and had to liberate a few buttons herself, but still stay decent. She had to admit, she was definitely more comfortable around Fergus now; they both were finally getting past that awkward stage. There were still awkward moments, but not nearly as many.

She laid there for quite a while with an arm thrown over her face to block the sun before she moved her arm again, due to _feeling_ Fergus's gaze on her, which he was staring.

"Enjoying the view?" she couldn't help but ask.

"Why yes, I am," Fergus replied with a grin.

Again a blush stained Dianna's cheeks. She walked herself right into that one. From her perspective, she had a decent view of Fergus himself, with the wind blowing open his halfway unbuttoned shirt. Sitting up on her elbows, she squinted at him, to see if she really was seeing what she was seeing.

"Is it just me, or is that a nasty scar on your chest?"

Fergus looked down to see what she was talking about, "Oh, no that's not just you, it is a rather nasty scar. This happened over a year ago, when I was down in Ostagar."

"How did I not notice that when we bandaged you up after Aedan attacked you at my house?" Dianna asked. Really, how did she miss it?

"Well I'm sure your attention was focused on the fresh wound," Fergus said, "Plus, from what I remember, the bandaging covered most of my chest anyway."

Well that was true, and Dianna nodded in agreement.

"Don't think that this is the only scar," Fergus said, "I'm riddled with them. That's what happens when you go to battle."

And to show her just what he meant, opened up his shirt the rest of the way for her to see, and he was indeed painted with dozens of scars, some more prominent than others.

"Ouch," Dianna said as Fergus buttoned the bottom buttons once more.

"You have no idea," Fergus said, "But at least now I have a story to tell to go with them."

"And that's all that matters?" Dianna laughed.

"Well amongst other men, yes," Fergus replied, "Whoever has the most scars and best story wins."

"Wins what?"

Fergus paused before replying, "It's a man thing, you wouldn't understand."

Dianna rolled her eyes, "Whatever."

They were silent for a few minutes before Dianna couldn't help but ask, "So what was Ostagar like?"

"Cold…wet," Fergus said, "And I've never felt such terror as I did there. Darkspawn are… monstrous creatures. I was the only member of my scouting party that survived when we were attacked. Why do you ask?"

"My sister was there," Dianna said, "Unlike the rest of us, when she arrived here, she was in the forest there. Alistair was the one who found her."

"Wait…your sister was the 'witch' found in the Wilds?"

"She's not a witch."

"Well, that was the rumor," Fergus said, "Heard about it when I arrived there, shortly before heading into the Wilds myself with my party. Even saw her. Didn't look like a witch of the wilds to me so…you can stop giving me that look."

"Wait, so you actually saw her there?"

Fergus nodded, "She was doing some training with a Grey Warden."

"Huh…wow it's certainly a small world."

"That it is," Fergus agreed.

"Do you…ever regret leaving for Ostagar when you did?" Dianna dared ask. This was something that was seldom brought up, and for good reason, "Considering what happened…here?"

Fergus's face fell, "There were times that I wished I insisted on waiting for my father to accompany me, perhaps I could have made a difference, or died with my family…but considering where my life is going now…I don't regret anything."

Dianna smiled shyly as he gently caressed her face with his fingers. She couldn't help but feel timid and embarrassed from the compliment, but she was glad to hear that Fergus was starting to move past what happened to his family.

"Question is," Fergus continued, "Considering what happened in my past, and what my brother is like towards you and your family…do you regret ever meeting me?"

Her answer was easy, and she didn't hesitate as she replied, "Of course not."

Wrapping his hand around the back of her neck, Fergus bent down and kissed Dianna with a passion that was seldom used. Dianna's arms buckled, sinking down onto her back once more, Fergus following her down. Now that she didn't need her arms supporting her, she reached up to grab Fergus's face as she kissed him back with equal passion. She knew she was falling hard for him, but if she loved him just yet…she wasn't sure. But she knew she hadn't felt this way about anyone else before.

A tremor shot down her spine as she felt Fergus's fingertips tracing their way down her neck, her stomach doing a little flip as they venture lower and tickled across her collarbone. In the far back of her mind, she was freaking out a little from the touching and knowing where it was going, but it was nearly drowned out by the thrill and feeling a little drunk from the wondrous feeling it gave her combined with the kiss.

Fergus's fingers stopped when they hit the buttons to her dress, but they weren't halted for long as they moved to undo the next two on the dress. Dianna involuntarily gasped as his hand slipped under the fabric, sliding down to cup a breast. The sensations from the touch were completely intoxicating, and that voice in the back of her head was all but non-existent now. It felt like she had little control over her body, that it was doing things on its own, like her hands trailing down to Fergus's chest to run her fingers across the weathered skin over his rippling muscles.

It wasn't until Fergus started undoing more buttons and sliding his hand down across her stomach as he trailed kisses to her breasts that the forefront of Dianna's mind agreed with the voice in the back. From where she could tell this was going, she wasn't comfortable enough with it. Grabbing Fergus's hand, she pulled it away and sat up.

"I think we stop," Dianna said breathlessly.

"Did I go too far?" Fergus asked worriedly.

"I stopped you before you did," Dianna said, buttoning the front of her dress back up again, save the last two top ones, "I-I-I…I'm sorry Fergus but I'm…I've never been touched like that before, so it's…I'm not…oh I don't know how to _say_ this."

"It's too fast, too soon?" Fergus asked.

"Yeah, a bit of that," Dianna replied, "I don't exactly know how far you were thinking of going… but anything further than what we were doing…I'm not entirely comfortable with that…I hope you don't think I'm not comfortable around you, because I am, it's just—."

Fergus placed a finger on Dianna's lips to silence her, an endearing smile on his face, "Dianna, I understand, you don't have to explain yourself."

"Okay…," Dianna muttered quietly against his finger.

Fergus moved his hand away from her mouth to cup her face, "I'm still allowed to kiss you though?"

"I don't see anything wrong with _that_," Dianna replied, a blush staining her cheeks.

When he pulled her in to kiss her again, she most definitely didn't see anything wrong with it.

* * *

Dianna had never felt happier in her life as she did for the next few weeks. Things were moving along quite nicely between her and Fergus, and every time she thought about him, or was with him, her heart just fluttered happily and she couldn't wipe the smile off her face. Maggie couldn't help but roll her eyes and make a face of disgust seeing her friend gush over a guy.

"You are so in love with him," Maggie told her one day.

"I wouldn't say love…," Dianna said, "I really like him…but I don't think I quite love him."

"Well, you're certainly on your way to that."

Dianna blushed sheepishly, "Maybe."

"Now the question is, does he feel the same way?"

Dianna's face fell, "I know he likes me…but I don't think he's ready to love me. You've heard what happened to his wife and son. Someone doesn't get over that quickly."

"Dianna…it's been a while," Maggie rebutted.

"Have you ever lost someone you loved?" Dianna asked, and when Maggie shook her head, "Then you wouldn't know how long it takes to get over a death of a loved one."

"Sorry," Maggie muttered.

Dianna opened her mouth to say something else when she was interrupted by Rosemary poking her head into the bedroom. She first looked over at Maggie, then to Dianna, "Mom says it's time for Maggie to go home."

"What?" Maggie asked, "But I've stayed longer before. Why am I being sent home?"

"Something about Dianna not doing her chores," Rosemary said, which Dianna knew was a lie, she did her chores this morning. So what was this really about?

"Oh, and Dad's back with the mail," Rosemary added, and it all clicked together why Maggie needed to go home. They got another letter from Olyvia.

"Sorry Maggie, I must have been daydreaming all morning," Dianna went along with the lie.

"And I believe it, oh well, there's always another day," Maggie said, getting up from her seat by the window and heading out, "I'll see you later."

Dianna said her goodbyes as well, and waited until she heard the front door shut before she and Rosemary went tearing back downstairs, sitting themselves down next to their parents on the couch in the living room.

"A letter from Livy?" Dianna asked.

Brenda nodded as she broke the seal to the envelope, "And now that Maggie is gone, we can read it."

Unfolding the paper inside, Brenda read it out loud, the first paragraph announcing Olyvia's big news. Rosemary let out a squeal which Dianna was quick to cut off with a hand over her mouth. Even that didn't stop Rosemary completely, who Dianna was sure was chanting something like "Livy had her baby" over and over. Their mom stopped reading after the news, her brow furrowing in concern.

"What is it Mom?" Dianna asked.

"The baby shouldn't have been ready to be born, she still had months left, according to my calculations," Brenda replied.

"Maybe…continue reading, to see if she explains that?" Dianna suggested, Rosemary finally prying her hand away.

Their mom did so, and Olyvia did explain why it seemed she had her baby early.

"'I'm certain you're thinking it is far too early for me to have the baby, but…I have a confession to make. I sort of waited longer than necessary to let you know I was pregnant because I already was when Alistair and I got married.' WHAT!?" Brenda screeched.

"WHAT?" Allen repeated in the same manner as his wife.

Rosemary's and Dianna's jaws dropped, both speechless for a few moments. Rosemary was the first to recover, "Ooooh, Livy is in so much trouble!"

After seething for a few minutes, Brenda was able to resume reading the letter, which Olyvia explained that Alistair had no idea she was pregnant until after the wedding, so he didn't just marry her because he got her pregnant, and that she didn't regret anything because they had a wonderful little family, which was all they wanted.

"I'm going to kill him," Allen growled.

"Dad…it's not like he knocked her up and left," Dianna said, "Olyvia said he had no clue she was pregnant when they got married, and weren't they engaged when we left Denerim? She wasn't pregnant yet."

"Or she could have been," Brenda said, "You never know."

Dianna just shrugged, "I'm just saying, he loves Livy and it's not like he didn't end up not being her husband so…everything's alright, right?"

"She still should have waited!" Brenda argued.

"Yes, I know, but I'm just saying don't kill Alistair," Dianna said.

"How about maim?" Allen asked.

"That you would have to get the okay from Livy," Dianna said, "Because maiming sounds like a reasonable punishment to me."

"Livy's had her baby!" Rosemary said happily.

Dianna looked at her sister in disbelief, "Have you missed the entire conversation just now?"

"I'm excited, I'm an Aunt now!"

"Right…I'm an Aunt too," Dianna muttered.

Brenda finished reading the letter, which there was little left, before folding it up again and sighed heavily, "I wish I could go see her. Help her out."

"Well…couldn't you?" Dianna asked, "Aedan is back in Denerim by now, if you travel under an alias, maybe make a few stops on your way…you could."

"I'd love to," Brenda said, "But I'm scared to, for her safety."

"I'm sure you can make a difficult trail to follow," Dianna said, "Livy would love seeing you."

"I wish I could go," Rosemary said forlornly.

"Only one should go," Allen said, "So Brenda, you best start packing."

* * *

A few days later Dianna was heading up to the castle to see Fergus again, and she was practically skipping the entire way. Life was good. She was seeing a wonderful man, Aedan was away again and not really bothering them, and her sister had her baby. When she found Fergus in the study, she practically leapt at him to hug him in her excitement.

"Someone seems happy today," Fergus said once he set Dianna back on the floor.

Dianna nodded, a grin still on her face.

"And just what happened? I don't think I've ever seen you this way."

Dianna wasn't sure whether to tell Fergus about Olyvia and her baby or not. It's not like he didn't know she had a sister, he very well knew Olyvia was her sister. Dianna doubted Fergus would tell anyone though that Olyvia had a child, or that she was in contact with her family here, meaning they would know where to find them.

"You promise not to say anything? To _anyone_?" Dianna questioned.

Fergus raised an eyebrow, "What sort of news is this that I'm being sworn to secrecy?"

"It's necessary," Dianna said, "And I trust you Fergus, so if you do divulge anything, it would mean the end of us."

"Well I don't want that," Fergus said, "You have my word, I won't say anything."

"My sister and Alistair had their son two weeks ago," Dianna said, "I'm an Aunt."

"They—they—they've had a child?"

Dianna nodded.

"Well, you'll have to extend my congratulations to them," Fergus said, "And now I understand your exuberance today."

"I'm happy for Livy," Dianna said, "She's very happy, with where she is in life, and I can't help but be happy for her too. Plus I'm an Aunt now!"

Fergus smiled, reaching out to gently caress her face, "Do you realize how beautiful you are when you smile?"

Dianna blushed, her happy smile becoming a timid one as she averted her gaze, "Um…no? Since I can't see my face most of the time, I'd need a mir—."

She was cut off as Fergus pulled her in close and his lips found hers. It was a few minutes before they broke apart for need of air.

"You are so beautiful Dianna," Fergus whispered, "You should smile more often."

"Well, I'm starting to find more things to smile about," Dianna replied, smiling lovingly up at him.

Yes, life was good indeed.

* * *

Zevran sat in a corner of the Gnawed Noble Tavern, keeping his ears open for useful gossip. After Aedan sent him off months ago, he didn't actually go anywhere, instead stayed in Denerim. He hadn't heard much, save the interesting rumor of a demon being cast out of his majesty, which Zevran wasn't sure if it were true or not. It certainly would explain things. Of course it was risky for him to stay in one place for so long especially Denerim considering the Crows had assassins and spies here, but he was good at hiding, none of the local crows ever noticed him.

As he drank his ale, he noticed a crow spy enter the tavern and head to the back room, where others usually were. So he stealthily moved closer to the room to overhear what was now going on within the Order.

"So now we have an official hit on him?" he heard one say, "Well isn't that nice, we'll get paid for hunting down a traitor."

Zevran's brows furrowed. Just who were they talking about? He had a gut feeling he knew whoever they were talking about.

"We have to get information out of him first," the other said, "The contract is also for the fugitives."

Ah so they were hired to either find or kill Alistair and Olyvia. Zevran guessed Aedan got tired of relying on him for that job. Wait a minute then, who else were they talking about…oh crap.

"I want at least five more assassins on this job," the first Crow said, "Zevran was one of our best, and he's a slippery one. I don't want him getting away this time."

Okay, he had heard enough. Turning around Zevran zipped out of the tavern and headed to the front gates. It was time for Zevran to get out of town, and lead the Crows on the biggest wild goose chase ever.

* * *

Dianna's mother had left at the end of the week on a boat that would first go to the Free Marches, stopping at each city-state there, getting off at one of those, and taking another boat to Antiva, or perhaps having another stop in between her destination. It wasn't until a month or so later that they received news that she had made it safely, and Olyvia was overjoyed to see her mother again, and to have her help. And from what Brenda was saying, little Kennic was absolutely adorable.

Summer was coming to an end, so that meant the end of beach trips, at least with the intent to swim. Fergus and Dianna would occasionally go down once the cooler weather settled in to just walk, talk, and Dianna would collect agates and/or seashells. With Dianna's mom gone however, she had to take over in a fair amount of her duties at the house so she didn't get as many opportunities to see Fergus during the time her mom was away. Fergus wasn't nearly as busy anymore, having gotten the bulk of his work done during the summer, so he didn't mind so much Dianna just showing up whenever she had the time, since that would be easiest for the both of them instead of trying to find a day to see each other.

Dianna could tell Fall was approaching as she walked up to the castle one day after finishing her household chores, shivering as a chill wind blew through the streets. She'd have to start wearing her heavier cloak to stave off the cold. Upon reaching the castle, she was grateful to have the walls around her. Taking off her cloak, she slung it over an arm and was about to head to the study when a soldier called out to her.

"Lady Dianna, you'll find his Lordship in the courtyard," he told her before she could slip away.

"The courtyard?" she had only seen the courtyard in passing, but at least she knew where it was, "Thank you for letting me know."

The soldier bowed his head and returned to his post while Dianna altered her course and made her way to the courtyard. Amongst the straw dummies, targets, and piles of extra straw were a few soldiers training, and Fergus dressed in his full set of armor, beating away at one of the dummies with his sword. Leaning against one of the stone pillars surrounding the courtyard, Dianna waited for Fergus to finish before she interrupted him. She figured it'd be safer anyway to wait until his sword was sheathed.

She had to wait quite a while before Fergus had either finished his exercise, or tired himself out, delivering one last blow to the dummy which cut off its head, straw exploding in a cloud around it. Dianna began clapping, and Fergus turned sharply to see who it was.

"Impressive," Dianna said, "Now what ever did that dummy do to you?"

"Dianna! H-how long have you been standing there?" Fergus asked, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Oh, just a bit," Dianna replied, "I didn't want to interrupt."

"It doesn't matter if my training is interrupted, but I appreciate the thought. I do wish, however, that I had some warning of your arrival," Fergus said, taking a rag from a servant who ran up to him with one, "I'm hardly in a state of being seen."

Dianna couldn't help but laugh, "Isn't a girl supposed to be the one concerned about her appearance?"

"Well, when a man wants to impress a lady he wants to look his best as well," Fergus said.

"Didn't I say I was impressed anyway?"

"That you did," Fergus replied.

A servant approached Fergus, distracting him for a few minutes, during which time Dianna entertained herself by picking up a longbow and fiddling with it. She was surprised by how difficult it was to pull the string back, even the tiniest bit. Professionally made bows were definitely harder to pull back than the at-home made ones with string from the cat food bag. Even the ones she had used during school or summer camp were easier to pull back. They were probably made that way on purpose.

"You look rather interested in that bow," Fergus said from behind her, startling her and making her jump.

"Oh, I've always been interested in archery," Dianna said once she whirled around, setting the bow back where she found it, "But I've only shot real bows only a few times. The tension is a lot stronger than the ones I had used, I don't know if I could pull it back."

"Want to give it a try?" Fergus asked.

Dianna scoffed and laughed, "And embarrass myself? No thank you."

"I'll help you," Fergus offered.

"Let me reiterate what I said earlier. I may be interested in archery, but I really do suck at it."

"And practice makes perfect," Fergus said, "I'm all for you learning some way to defend yourself, you could certainly use it, especially if you get into anymore situations like you have."

Dianna shivered as images from the night she had been nearly raped flashed through her mind. Yeah, if she had some sort of weapon and knew how to use it, things could have turned out much differently. At least she had gotten away in the first place anyway.

"My father always told me, that if he had had a daughter, he would have taught her how to fight, didn't matter she was a girl, and I share his opinion on that matter," Fergus said, grabbing the longbow and holding it out to her, "So what do you say?"

Dianna chewed on her bottom lip as she deliberated over options, before taking the longbow, "Okay, but you can't look for the first shot."

"Why ever not?" Fergus laughed.

"Because I told you, I'm horrible, I probably won't shoot it ten feet," Dianna said.

Fergus picked Dianna up, making her squeak in surprise, and carried her over to the targets before setting her down on her feet, "Then you can start out right here."

Dianna looked over to the targets, most likely ten feet away, before glaring at Fergus, "Ha, very funny. You still can't watch."

Fergus then handed her a small piece of leather, "You may want to use the finger tab."

Dianna took the finger tab from him, which he then helped her put on, since it had been a few _years_ since she had used one, and one that was much simpler to put on. Once that was done, Fergus handed her an arrow, and Dianna just stared at Fergus until he turned around before knocking the arrow. Pulling back the string, her arm and hand holding the bow quivered from the strong tension, but she did manage to pull it back all the way, if only for a second before she couldn't handle it anymore and released the arrow. She didn't hit the target at all, but she did at least hit the straw pile the target was painted on, that way she didn't break or lose an arrow.

"See, told you," Dianna said.

"At least you hit the straw pile," Fergus said, "That's a lot better than some other attempts I've seen."

"You're just trying to make me feel better."

"I'm being serious," Fergus said, "And like I said, practice makes perfect. You're more than welcome to come here to do so, some of the archers could help you too, if you wanted."

"I'll think about it," Dianna said.

"Very well. So what shall we do today?"

* * *

Dianna ended up deciding to learn archery, since it wasn't like it would have any adverse effects on her. It'd be good for her to learn some sort of fighting, with the world she had been thrown into, _not_ learning how to fight was just a death sentence. So when Dianna came to the castle, she would practice if Fergus was training, or busy, until he was available. During the month her mother was gone, Dianna had gotten to the point where she no longer had trouble pulling back the string, and was working on consistently hitting the target, where she wanted it. With her bad eyesight, that would be a problem, but she was determined to become good at this.

When Brenda finally returned home, she had a tan and gifts for the family. Dianna got some jewelry and pretty hair clips and pins, same as Rosemary though she got more hair items because she just had so much hair, and both got a dagger Alistair had made himself. For Allen, he got an individual letter from Olyvia, and a charcoal drawing she had done of her mother holding Kennic. He got a little teary-eyed reading the letter and seeing the drawing, and tucked them away in a safe place after Rosemary and Dianna got to gush over Kennic's cuteness.

During those two months that gone by from her mother's departure to her return, Dianna had fallen head over heels in love, but was too scared to tell Fergus how she felt. She would rather wait to tell him after he told her he felt that way, but that was _if_ he even felt that way. Would he tell her if he did? She thought he would, since he had been fairly forward with his feelings toward her their entire relationship. Maggie of course was the one Dianna confided in about this conundrum she had as they walked about the city.

"I understand why you won't tell him, but…isn't it a bit cruel to hold that from him?"

"I don't want my heart broken when he tells me he only still likes me, and still loves Oriana," Dianna replied, "He was with his wife for years, had a child with her, you can't ever stop loving someone you've spent so long with, even when you meet someone new."

"I'm sure there's room in his heart to love you," Maggie said.

"I hope so," Dianna said quietly, her face solemn. Fergus hadn't even implied or shown any further feelings for her during these last few months, so all she could do was hope.

Maggie wracked her mind for something to say to cheer her friend up, something finally popping a few moments later, "Maybe he does love you and he's just afraid to tell you, for the same reason you're afraid to tell him. That's always a possibility."

"I guess you're right," Dianna said.

"Of course I'm right, I'm always—AAAAAH!"

Dianna whirled around to see what Maggie was screaming about to see her flailing feet disappearing into an alley. For a second Dianna thought that maybe the jealous locals were trying to mess with them, but she was corrected just moments later as she too was grabbed. The way they handled all her squirming and fighting told Dianna they were no normal street thugs, but trained men. What they specialized in exactly, she had no clue, but she was hoping it wasn't assassination.

She was dragged into the alleyway as well before being gagged and her hands and feet bound, a bag pulled over her head last, and tightened so it couldn't be easily pulled off before she felt her captor carrying her off a ways before being unceremoniously dropped onto something wooden.

"What should we do with the extra?" she heard a man ask.

"We'll just take her as well," another man replied, "Can't let her go or else we'll have guards on our tail real quick."

"Why not just kill her?" another, this time a girl, asked.

"It's the middle of the day, in the city, fool girl," the second man snapped, "And we were only hired to kidnap, not kill. Now let's get moving to get as much ground between us and our eventual pursuers. This one will definitely have Highever's best sent after us."

The man patted Dianna's head with his last statement, making Dianna feel a little queasy. Was she being kidnapped for a ransom? And poor Maggie, being drug into this mess, literally.

Whatever they were on, it surged forward, and judging by the creak of wheels, Dianna guessed they were on a wagon or handcart. She tried sitting up and finding her way to the edge, but was roughly shoved backwards into the middle of the cart again.

"Don't try anything stupid," another unknown man said, "We may have been told not to kill you, but there was nothing saying you'd have to remain in tact. Or one piece. Push your luck and we will have to deal with you in the manner necessary."

So Dianna stayed put in the cart, though she did move around a bit until she found Maggie, and stayed next to her. Just because they told her to behave however, didn't mean she wasn't concocting an escape plan.

* * *

Fergus woke with a start upon hearing the loud pounding against his bedroom door. Getting out of the bed, he first grabbed his sword before going to the door, unlocking it, and slowly opening it just enough to look through.

"My Lord, Lady Dianna's father, Mister Hamilton is here," the servant outside said, "He is very upset my Lord."

Fergus opened the door all the way, a look of confusion on his face, "Why would he be here? And at this hour?"

"He wouldn't tell me my Lord, he only insisted on speaking with you."

"Very well, take me to him."

The servant nodded and headed off, Fergus following closely behind as they made their way to the main hall. Mr. Hamilton was pacing back in forth in front of the main doors, looking anxious and worried.

"Mr. Hamilton, what brings you here at this hour?" Fergus asked as he approached the man.

Allen whirled around to face Fergus, "Where's my daughter?"

"Dianna? I haven't seen her at all today," Fergus replied, worry starting to eat away at his stomach. If Dianna's father was here looking for her, and she was undoubtedly in trouble. Again.

"You're not just saying that are you?" Allen questioned.

"I'm not, I haven't seen Dianna in a few days," Fergus replied, "What's happened?"

Allen explained to Fergus that Dianna had gone out with her friend Maggie earlier that morning, and when she hadn't returned home by supper, thought perhaps that she stayed at Maggie's house. A quick trip over to their neighbor though told them that neither Maggie nor Dianna had returned home. So Allen went to the one other place he thought his daughter would be.

"I want the guard searching the city now," Fergus ordered, panic gripping at his chest, "Search every street, alley, and question all the citizens, find out if anyone saw anything."

"_All_ the citizens?" the head guard asked, turning a little pale.

"Yes, _all_ of them," Fergus said, "I don't care if you wake them up, the longer we wait to find clues, the less chance we have of finding Dianna alive."

The head guard nodded, and hurried off to round up his men for their task. When Fergus turned back to Allen, he found his eyes glistening as he tried holding back his tears. Fergus placed a consoling hand on his shoulder, "Do not worry, we'll find her."

Allen merely nodded, too emotional to speak.

"Go home, I'll inform you the moment I hear news myself," Fergus told him.

Again, Allen nodded, and headed out the front doors. Fergus returned to his room and changed into his armor. He knew he wouldn't be able to sleep, worrying for Dianna, so he may as well help find her.


End file.
